Time Again
by Lady Starlight so kiss my ass
Summary: Harry and Hermione accidentally go back in time 20 years. How will Harry react seeing the Marauders as teenagers? People always say love blooms in strange places how strange is 20 years ago? HPSB RLHG JPLE
1. Chapter 1

**Title:**_ Time Again_

**Author:**_ Lady Starlight so kiss my ass_

**Summary:** _Harry and Hermione accidentally go back in time 20 years, to the Marauders' Era. How will Harry react to seeing his parents and Sirius as teenagers? People always say love blooms in strange places. How strange is 20 years ago?_

**Pairings:**_ Sirius/Harry, James/Lily and Remus/Hermione._

**Rating:** _PG-15, though there are times you might consider it higher._

**Spoilers:**_ Books One through Five. Sirius did die, but he came back months later._

**Warnings:** _Obviously, there is a SLASH warning, because the main couple, the one I'm mostly focused on, is Sirius and Harry. Also, I should warn you, I really hate Ron and Ginny for some unexplainable reason. I personally think that Ron should be shot by one of Voldie's flunkies and Ginny should be eaten by her Master's snake. So they will NOT be portrayed well in this story. I warned you. There are Time-Travel warnings, and Super-powered Harry warnings (though I keep the power use under wraps) LOTS of 'sibling' love between Hermione and Harry (NOTHING ROMANTIC) and an OMC that comes in later, and plays a relatively important part. I think that covers is. Lord that's a lot._

**Disclaimer:** _I do not own. I do not own. I do not own._

**Rambles:**_ This was beta'd! Whoot!! So my undying thanks to cckeimig. Reposted chapters One to Twelve. _

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter One.**

The room was dark, lit only with a few well-placed spells. In the center of the room was a large bronze cauldron with three male teenagers surrounding it. Two wore mischievous grins, while the third looked on with mild concern. Stirring the cauldron safely the tallest of the three, James, skimmed his hand down a time-worn piece of parchment that they were following.

"Fish fins," James William Potter said.

"Fish fins," Sirius Orion Black echoed. He handed James the fins and smirked when his friend tossed them carelessly into the bubbling cauldron.

"Salamander eyes," Remus John Lupin muttered. He would never know how he got roped into this.

Actually, he didn't know how he got roped into most things. He just usually ended up doing dangerous things with his three best friends that could get all four of them expelled, or killed. Personally, he thought the first option was worse.

It was midnight, the night before the full moon, and the three boys were standing in the Heads' Common Room, over a boiling and bubbling cauldron.

If they got caught…

"Salamander eyes!" Sirius said in a check-list voice. His dark blue eyes danced as he grinned at his irate best friend. "C'mon, Moony! This is supposed to be an adventure!" Sirius ran a hand through his coal black hair and danced out of the way of the annoyed Werewolf.

"Couldn't you have done this another time? Perhaps when the full moon wasn't the next bloody day?" Remus, the resident Werewolf nicknamed Moony, shook his sandy brown head and glared at his best friends with piercing amber eyes.

"Why would we do that?" James asked. "This way you're too tired to lecture us!"

"And by the time you're out of the Hospital Wing, you'll have forgotten all about it!" Sirius concluded.

James and Sirius had known each other since they were five. They had been best friends almost from the beginning, and after twelve years of friendship they could read each other's minds. Well, that's what is looked like to the uninitiated. Though even to James' and Sirius' best and closest friends it looked the same at times.

James scanned the page with his crystal blue eyes and sighed. "We're waiting for Wormtail now." James ran a hand through his already naturally messy raven black hair and dropped to the floor with a thud.

"Where is he?" Sirius demanded. Sirius was never one to sit still for long, and since he was already very impatient to complete the potion it wasn't a good thing to make him wait.

The door opened and a short, plump teen grinned at the three seventeen-year-olds. "Got it," he whispered; glancing to the door that housed the Head Girl and sighed with relief when he didn't hear anything from James' girlfriend.

"Good, Acid Pops." James grinned at his best friends and troublemakers. Though he and Sirius were without a doubt the worse of the four, the other two could, on occasion, be just as bad. The quartet had been labeled 'Marauders' by several of their Professors and it was a title that stuck.

"Acid Pops," Sirius announced when the suckers were tossed in. Remus stirred the cauldron and glanced at the messy potion instructions. He had a really bad feeling about this.

"Snake tongue," Sirius requested.

"One slimy snake tongue coming right up, mate!" James handed over the ingredient with exaggerated disgust.

"We need Werewolf hair." James said, reading over Sirius' shoulder. The two black-haired teens smirked at each other before eyeing their Werewolf friend.

"What a lovely potion," Remus muttered sarcastically, studying the potion again. He didn't notice the gleam in Sirius' and James' eyes. "It's not the least bit unsafe or anything. Really, who needs titles in English? Or a description of what the potion actually does, again, in English." The sarcasm was coming fast as he looked over the torn page. "Not to mention half of it is water-logged. The ingredients are beyond strange. How on Earth did you get it all?" Remus glanced up at his two friends and the sneer on his face evaporated instantly as worry replaced it.

"Oh, no! No! Padfoot! Prongs! NO!"

"YES!" They both shouted and jumped on their friend. From the sidelines Peter Pettigrew, aka Wormtail, sniggered at the predictability of the situation.

"GOT IT!" James shouted before hushing up again. "Paddy you can let him up now." James grinned at a smirking Sirius and a flustered Remus. "Yes, Pads," James told Sirius. "Moony is looking a little on the pale side. Best to let him up, mate."

"Ahh, Prongsie," Sirius whined. "I want to add the Wolf hair!"

"Too slow, mate!" James added the last of the ingredients and stirred the potion again. "Right then," he said. "It is done. I'll check on it again before Lils wakes up and then it should be cool enough to move." James smirked. "We'll see what it does tomorrow. Now get out, because if Lily finds you sleeping in here again she'll get bloody suspicious and that is never good, or fun."

"Night, Prongs," Padfoot, Moony and Wormtail said as they left the Common Room.

"Night, mates," James locked the portal and with a final glance at the cooling potion, he went into the Head Boy's room and fell asleep.

The potion let off an eerie emerald green glow all night long.

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	2. Chapter 2

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Two.**

_They were late._

"Oh, fuck! Oh, fuck! Oh, fuck!" Hermione Jane Granger muttered as she and her best friend Harry James Potter raced into their NEWT Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, fifteen minutes late.

It was Harry's fault, of course. The Boy-Who-Lived just _**had**_ to detour to their Common Room for forgotten books. Of course, being the loving friend that she was, Hermione had gone with him.

They had run into a hoard of Potter-Lovers.

Or, Harry's Strip-Leaders, as Hermione preferred to call them. She was never sure what would come off next. On their first day back this year Harry had lost a shirt. The next time they had caught Harry one of the cheerleaders had tossed _her_ shirt to Harry for him to sign.

Luckily, today nothing was taken off. Though Hermione still shuddered at some of the vivid descriptions they had heard before escaping.

So now they were late.

Harry flung open the door, muttering apologies to … no one.

The classroom was completely empty. Harry frowned and his emerald eyes caught something on Professor Remus Lupin's desk. The Werewolf had returned to teach the year before much to the entire student body's (third year and up, that is) pleasure. Although the Slytherins were less obvious in their pleasure at having him back on staff. Harry picked up the note and read it aloud.

"Harry, Hermione. We have gone to do a lesson. You know how to find us. Moony." 

Harry glanced up at Hermione and winced at the glare she gave him. "Looks like it is back to the Rooms," he said apologetically.

The Head Girl glared and stomped out of the classroom. Harry quickly followed, not before grabbing the note. The Head Students of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry ran back to their separate Common Room and paused briefly before a picture of James and Lily Potter.

"Password?" Lily asked politely.

"_Paladin."_ Harry quickly said and entered the red and gold Common Room.

Immediately after they moved into the Head Rooms, Harry and Hermione had set about decorating. The walls were covered with pictures of their friends and family. Over the fireplace mantle was a life-sized portrait of the three true Marauders while they were still in school. The only picture of the Golden Trio smiled down on them where it hung on the wall between their rooms. It had been taken as they arrived at the school last year. All three were in their Hogwarts uniforms and waiting for the feast. There were pictures of Harry and Hermione with all the Weasleys, and separate group shots. Hermione smiled as she spotted a picture of Harry between the twins. Those boys were a blessing in disguise.

Harry jogged into his room, a smile passing over his face as he saw the picture of himself with Sirius and Remus that was taken at Grimmauld Place last year. Flicking the top lock of his four-lock compartment trunk open, Harry ran a hand through his raven black hair. Harry bit the inside of his lip when he didn't immediately see his Marauders' Map. It usually sat on top of all his other treasures.

"Hey, Mione! Do you have my Map?" He yelled out and heard his friend rummaging around in her trunk in the room next to him. Harry opened the next section, where he put his brooms, the Firebolt, Firebolt3000 and Lightning, and other Quidditch things. He looked through his red and gold robes but still couldn't find it.

The third compartment had all his schoolbooks and ingredients. His homework was lazily stuffed in there, to. The last section was filled with clothes. Harry hadn't bothered to unpack because you never knew when you were going to need to move. Especially with the Second War against Lord Voldemort just ending. There were still Death Eaters that needed to be caught. Harry ruffled through his clothes and sighed when he couldn't find his father's map.

"I can't find it!" Hermione yelled, annoyed. Her chocolate eyes flashed with anger as she glared at her trunk. She picked up her mother's hand mirror and ran a finger over the engraved 'EW' for Emerald White. Her parents had been killed during the early part of the summer and she had clung to Harry after that, desperate not to lose anyone else she loved.

Hermione put her mom's mirror down.

Harry locked his trunk.

A green light flashed through the Heads' Rooms.

Hermione screamed.

Harry rushed to the door that connected their rooms.

They blacked out.

OoOoO

Albus Dumbledore frowned over the two students in his office. He had been enjoying a quiet walk around through the school before the students got out of their last class. He had been walking by the Heads' Rooms when the hallway started to glow a bright green. Curious and worried, Albus had entered the room and found two unknown students, Gryffindors apparently, lying on the floor in the Common Room.

The Headmaster of Hogwarts had heard another crash and turned to watch two trunks land, one on top of the other, beside them. Both were black wooden trunks with golden locks. Albus floated both of the students and their trunks to his office, where he was currently waiting for them to awake.

"Urgh," the raven-haired boy sat up. He rubbed his arms tiredly and opened his eyes. He looked around and when his emerald eyes fell on the girl he was on his feet and by her side in half a heart beat.

"Mione? Mione, love, wake up. Right now! Wake up!" He shook her lightly and prayed that she was alright.

"Mmmm, Harry?" The girl asked. Harry sighed with relief and pulled her into his arms.

"What the hell was that, Hermione?" The boy looked tired but that didn't stop him from picking up the girl and walking her to his big comfy chair.

"I don't know Harry." Hermione stretched and took in where they were. "Hello, Headmaster." Hermione said, her chocolate eyes tired. Harry glanced up and glared at Dumbledore.

"Why are you just standing there? Jeez, old man! Get her something cold to drink!"

Albus raised an eyebrow at the heated demand. He had never had _**anyone**_ talk to him like that before. It would be quite interesting if it wasn't so completely rude.

"I'm fine, Headmaster, don't worry." Hermione turned to glare at Harry and smacked him upside the head. "And YOU! Use your manners! I don't care if you ONLY use them around Headmaster Dumbledore, but I _insist _that you actually use them, Harry!"

Harry growled and glared at Dumbledore. "Somehow, this is your fault, Albus." Harry walked towards the strange chessboard and picked up a white piece. He fiddled it between his fingers and looked back to the Headmaster.

"Can you tell me what that green light was about?" He asked and Dumbledore sighed and shook his head.

"I am afraid I do not know. I was walking and found you unconscious in the Heads' Common Room." Harry sighed and turned back to the chessboard. He put the piece down and stared at the board in confusion.

"Hey! Albus, where'd you put Snape? And Draco?" Harry couldn't find the gray pieces anywhere on the board.

"Mr. Snape and who?" Dumbledore asked and Harry frowned.

"Mr. Snape?" Hermione mouthed silently.

"Draco? Draco Malfoy? Ol' Snake Head's son?"

Hermione stared between her best friend and Albus Dumbledore. "I think you know him better as Lucius Malfoy." Harry rolled his eyes.

"That's what I said, Mione." Harry picked up a black piece and tossed it between his fingers expertly. He didn't catch Albus' wide eyes but Hermione did. And her clever mind began putting pieces together. Hermione stalled Harry's hand and took the black King from his hands. She yelped and dropped it. Dumbledore looked on with even more confusion.

"Put it back, Harry." Harry rolled his eyes and scooped the black king that represented Lord Voldemort and put it back on the unusual chess board. He didn't see WHY Hermione touched it; no one was able to, except him. Dumbledore had more than one theory on why Harry was the only one able to touch the piece.

"Headmaster? What year is it?" Hermione asked when Harry stepped back.

Harry looked at Hermione in confusion. "Did you hit your head that hard, Mione? It's September 17, 1997." Harry rolled his eyes and picked up the black king again, fiddling with it as he rolled his eyes at his best friend.

"No, it is September 17, 1977." Albus said and Harry snorted out a laugh.

"My apologies, Mione. It's the old man who hit his head." Harry got hit on the head himself and Hermione looked around the office innocently and curiously, winking at Harry when he glared at her.

"No, Harry, it would explain the differences in the office. And why Snape and Draco are not on the board." Hermione walked over to Harry and smiled at the Headmaster. "I think you just shocked him a little too much."

"Huh?" Harry asked, still fiddling with the black piece. Hermione gripped his wrist and brought the piece into his view. "Ooh," the Boy-Who-Lived said and put the black piece down. He looked at Albus and flopped into a chair.

"So we're twenty years into the past, huh?" He asked sarcastically. "That means my Mum and Dad are here, too?" Albus studied Harry and raised an eyebrow in question. "James Potter and Lily Evans, or so she is called now."

Albus smiled and nodded. "Yes, they are here. Just started their seventh year."

Harry sighed and sat back. "I'm Harry Potter by the way. If you didn't already catch that from Mione's screeching. ("I do _not_ screech," Hermione grumbled.) She is Hermione Granger. So what are we going to do about this predicament?" Harry and Hermione exchanged looks as the damnable twinkle appeared in Albus' eyes again.

"Well, seeing as we do not know _how_ you got here and we have no knowledge on how to get you home, I think it best for you to continue your schooling here and now. You will stay in Gryffindor Tower, of course, with the other Gryffindors."

"Won't they find it suspicions?" Hermione asked. "Two students just suddenly showing up?"

"You're brother and sister, steps of course. Your parents married and you took Harry's last name." The Headmaster smiled again. "Though it will technically be Hermione's last name, to avoid suspicion."

"Harry Granger, huh?" The Boy-Who-Lived walked over to the trunks and shrunk them both. He handed Hermione hers and smirked at Albus. "Are you going to call Minnie in here? I think she will want to know that she has new students."

Albus did so and minutes later Minerva McGonagall, the Head of Gryffindor House, strolled in. "What is it, Albus? I was just getting ready to mark homework."

"So sorry, Minerva, but I would like you to meet your newest students. Harry and Hermione Granger. They will be joining your beloved Seventh Years." Minerva scowled and turned to look at Hermione and Harry.

Her eyes darted over Harry's messy raven hair, his lightening bolt scar and emerald eyes. He raised an eyebrow as she continued to stare and McGonagall shook her head.

"I apologize. You remind me of another Seventh Year I have. James Potter; are you by chance related to him?" She asked politely. Harry shook his head instead of saying anything, because he really didn't like to lie. He and Hermione followed her out of the office silently.

As McGonagall lead them to the Gryffindor Common Room she filled them in on things that any new student needed to know. Unfortunately she didn't know that they already knew everything she was telling them. The two travelers mostly ignored the repetition.

"I will have your course schedules at breakfast tomorrow. But I need to know your classes."

"Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Transfigurations, Charms are all at the NEWTS level." Harry told her. "Then there is Care of Magical Creatures, and Healing, I guess those are considered to be NEWTS as well."

"I'm taking the same classes as Harry, as well as Arithmancy and Astronomy." McGonagall simply nodded, their classes would be easy then to sort out.

"Alright then, I will see to it that you get your wanted classes." They continued walking. "Where are you from originally, you didn't say."

"Australia," Harry said without a pause. "Dad and Emerald, Mione's Mum, moved out here and when things were finally set up they called us over."

McGonagall 'hemmed' as they got to the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Password?" She said.

"_Galloping Gargoyles."_

The portrait swung open at McGonagall's command. Harry and Hermione entered the familiar Common Room and noticed it was mostly empty. There were probably only a dozen students and most were studying. The usually loud room fell silent as the Head of Gryffindor walked in.

McGonagall led them to a group of teens that Harry immediately recognized. Harry stifled his laughter as the duo playing Exploding Snap glanced up and paled dramatically.

"Whatever it was we didn't do it!" They both said and Remus Lupin, at 17 mind you, snickered.

"Potter, Black, I merely wanted to inform you that we had some new students arrive today."

James Potter glanced behind McGonagall and spotted Harry and Hermione. He raised a dark eyebrow and elbowed Sirius Black. The two black-haired, 17-year-old Pranksters studied their new classmates and smiled all too innocently.

"Welcome to Gryffindor House." James said politely. "I'm James Potter, Head Boy this year. This is Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. We're some of the Seventh Years you'll be living with." James glanced to McGonagall. "He's dorming with us right?"

"Yes, Mr. Granger will be sharing your dorm." She gave the boys a slight glare. "Let's keep it that way, shall we? Ms. Granger will be sharing a dorm with Ms. Evans. I trust you all to inform her."

"Yes ma'am." The four Marauders said and McGonagall turned on her heel.

"Any problems, Granger, talk to me or the Headmaster. Both of you."

"Yes, Professor," They both said. Hermione turned to look at the boys before asking innocently.

"So…who's Ms. Evans?" Harry nearly snorted at the dreamy look that appeared on James' face. Remus and Sirius laughed outright.

"Lily Evans is Jamie-boy's girl," Sirius provided, his blue eyes bright with mischief. It was a look Harry knew well and had seen on his Godfather's face more often lately, in his own time.

"After four years of trying our boy here finally got his date," Remus added. Pettigrew butted in then, noticing how red his friend was.

"He did get his first date with her some time last May," Pettigrew supplied. Harry spared him a single glance before turning back to James and Sirius. If he paid much attention to his parents' betrayer he knew he would go ballistic and do something incredibly stupid.

"Is Lily Evans in class or something?" Harry asked, looking around the Common Room.

"No, I'm right here," a cheerful female voice said. They all turned to look at the redhead with a Defence book in her hands. Lily Evans smiled at Harry and Hermione before sitting by her boyfriend. "Who are you?" Her emerald eyes, identical to Harry's, scanned the two travelers with interest.

"I'm Harry P-Granger. This is my step-sister Hermione Granger." Harry smiled slightly and Hermione sat on the loveseat in front of the Marauders and Lily. Harry plopped down beside her, glad that no one (but Hermione) noticed his slip.

Lily smiled again, "It's nice to meet you. I take it you will be dorming with me, Hermione?"

"Yup, I will…right after I kill Harry!" Hermione glared at Harry. "Yup!? Yup!? Harry!" But Harry was laughing his head off.

"Mione here doesn't use _**any**_ slang…" Harry giggled. "So whenever she slips, it's my fault."

"Sounds like Lily here, before James got to her," Sirius laughed. Hermione and Lily sneered and then smiled at each other.

"It's nice to meet you, Lily. Hopefully this means I won't be surrounded by males all the time."

"But wouldn't that mean you got a lot of dates then?" Lily asked and frowned when Hermione snorted.

"You'd think, wouldn't you?" Hermione tossed a glare at Harry, who just smiled innocently. Hermione sighed and shook her head. She knew very well that it was his fault none of the Students in their time dared to ask her out, not even Ron! Although she wouldn't have gone out with him anyhow.

Lily laughed in understanding. "How about I show you where you're sleeping?"

"That'd be great," Hermione said with a smile. The two girls walked off, gaining the attention of every male in the Common Room.

"You look like jealous boyfriends, or over-protective brothers," Sirius teased. Harry and James stopped glaring at the students and turned it on Sirius.

"Alright, alright! Merlin, Jamie-boy, go show your clone where he will be sleeping."

James shook his head and led Harry up to the Seventh Year boy's dorm. He pointed to a spare bed, beside a window, across from the door.

"You'll be sleeping there. I'm across from you, Sirius beside me, Remus beside you and Peter on my side by the door. Since we have access to the Head Rooms we don't usually spend as much time in here as we used to, so if you need anything, and we're not here, we will more than likely be there."

As James spoke about the school Harry enlarged his trunk and set it beside his bed. He pulled the four keys. He opened the third compartment as James went on to explain who the Prefects were.

"What do you have tomorrow?" The Boy-Who-Lived interrupted the younger version of his father.

"Double NEWTS Potions in the afternoon." Harry pulled out his Potions text. "NEWTS Charms after breakfast, then Healing." Harry nodded, guessing that he'd have the same schedule. Harry put the books on his bed and pulled out some quills and ink. When he was satisfied he locked that section and opened the second.

Harry sighed when he caught site of his three babies all in one piece. From the corner of his eye Harry saw James' eyes widen and hid his smirk. He wondered if James would start drooling if he found out Harry's brooms were better quality than even the top broom in his time.

"My Godfather bought me them; one when I was thirteen, the second when I turned sixteen, the third I got for my seventeenth, because it's my last year at school. He had them custom made cuz he likes to spend money on me." It was true about the brooms, but the Firebolt3000 Harry had gotten after Sirius had come back from wherever he had been. All of them were the top brooms in Harry's time when he got them. The Lightning was the best and fastest.

"Taking the role of grandparents?" James teased, smiling slightly. His own Godfather had been like that before he died against Lord Voldemort.

"I don't have grandparents. And Mione's don't really like me."

Hermione's parents might be all for the Witch thing but April and Lucas White and Jack and Jill Granger crossed themselves whenever they came in contact with Hermione. Though his friend didn't mention it, Harry had seen her grandparents' reactions, which is why he had insisted she come stay with him, Sirius and Remus the summer before seventh year.

"Oh, that sucks, sorry."

"No big, I don't really like them either."

Harry caught James eyeing his brooms again and laughed. "Quidditch fan, then?"

"Captain of the Gryffindor Team, and Chaser. I'm going to guess that you play too?"

"Seeker, and no, Hermione doesn't play. I can't even get her ON a broom." Harry locked the second compartment and opened the first. There sat his father's mirror, on top of the Marauders' Map. Harry closed that compartment quickly and evaded James questions by asking some that he already knew. He would wonder later where and when the Map showed up.

"The four of you, you seem like good friends."

"Since we were eleven. Though I've known Sirius for longer."

"It shows," Harry commented. He noticed that they way they all interacted wasn't very different from the way they would in 20 years. Well, the way Sirius and Remus would interact.

The door flung open and the male in question walked in. "Moony's gone, Prongsie boy."

"Who?" Harry asked, feigning cluelessness. He discreetly glanced at his Muggle calendar and noted the moon. Sirius frowned slightly. Harry could almost hear him thinking rapidly.

"Moony, Remus, his mother's not doing well, he goes to visit her often."

"That sucks," Harry commented, "About his mother I mean."

The two males nodded in agreement and Harry caught Sirius looking from him to James again. "This is going to happen often, isn't it?"

James snorted and Sirius shrugged. "You do look a hell of a lot alike."

Harry rolled his eyes in mock annoyance. "Isn't there some legend that says every person has a twin?"

Sirius nodded eyes light. "Yes. So who's the evil twin, and who is the good twin?"

James smirked as he sniggered. "I'm insulted that you even have to ask!"

"Right, sorry, Prongsie! You're the evil twin!"

James clutched his heart and fell off Harry's bed dramatically. When James didn't say anything, or even move an inch, Harry looked up to Sirius, his gaze completely serious.

"I think you killed him."

Sirius glanced up at Harry, horror etched into his handsome face. A two and a half seconds later Sirius flung himself at James and shook his best friend's shoulders.

"JAMIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Sirius howled, still shaking his friend. "Jamie wake up now, you great git!"

"OWWW YOU MUTT!!!" James sat up and glared at his best friend. James rubbed the back of his head, where he had hit Remus' bed. "Be a bit careful, Dog Breath!"

"X-nay on the utt-may," Wormtail muttered quietly as he walked in.

The two taller Marauders rolled their eyes. _Like they'd be caught THAT easily._

"Oh, Siri, Harry here is a Quidditch fan." Sirius' eyes lit up.

"Is that so?" When Harry nodded Sirius bounced back to his feet. "What position do you play?"

"I played Seeker for my old team." One he should be captaining at the moment.

James and Sirius grinned at each other. "That's good," Sirius said, looking pleased. "Our last Seeker graduated last year and we are looking for a new one."

"You should come to the tryouts next Friday!" James grinned and jumped onto his bed. "We've seen most everyone in our House play and, well, they all suck!"

Harry snickered but smiled, "Well, if that's the case, how can I say no?"

"GREAT!" James and Sirius exclaimed.

Harry had to laugh watching them. Looking at James again Harry knew what everyone told him was the truth. He looked freakily identical to his father. There were some differences; James was taller by a few inches and had blue eyes. James' raven black hair was short and messy, while Harry's was growing out. Harry had started growing out his hair after Sirius _died_ and had decided against cutting it when his Godfather had come back. Both James' and Harry's hair was unbelievably naturally messy, though Harry had an easier time of dealing with it. Harry's emerald eyes and the lightning bolt scar on his forehead were the biggest differences between father and son.

Harry's eyes trailed around the dorm room and he shook his head. It was the same room that he and his friends had used in their time. And unfortunately that made Harry remember the lifeless look in Seamus Finnegan's eyes when Harry and Hermione had found his bloodied body lying dead in his bed. A shudder went through Harry as he remembered what his best friend had done to another of his friends. Finding Seamus dead in his bed had been what finally made Harry permanently move Hermione and himself out of Gryffindor and into their own set of rooms. Harry shook himself from his thoughts and glanced at Sirius.

Sirius Orion Black had dark coal black hair and dark sapphire blue eyes. He was an inch shorter than James and well built. He wore Muggle clothes and like James had had his School Robes tossed over his bed. Sirius glanced up at Harry and winked. Before jumping down on his bed and pulling out one of his textbooks.

"Yeh any good at Defence?" Sirius asked easily and James laughed.

"Siri, I told you to do that earlier!" Sirius pouted at James, his sapphire eyes growing large and soft. "OH, NO! NO, YOU DON'T! Not the puppy eyes, Sirius! That won't work!" James fled the dorm. Peter glanced back and followed James silently.

Sirius laughed and shook his dark hair. "Don't mind them. Jamie's not really a bad student, he just hates doing the homework." Sirius grabbed a quill and smirked at Harry.

"Do you still need help, though?" Harry asked, moving towards the younger version of his Godfather. Sirius glanced up at him and smiled thankfully.

"Yeah, that would be great. Moony usually helps with Defence but he's not here to bother."

"Don't worry," Harry smiled at Sirius. "Defence Against the Dark Arts is my best class. You couldn't be in better hands if the Professors helped you themselves."

"Really? That's great. It's not that I'm bad at it, but the stuff annoys me. I prefer Transfiguration and Potions." Sirius laughed when Harry's face went immediately pale. "Let me guess, no good luck in Potions?"

Harry gulped, remembering the years of torture at Severus Snape's hands. They might have called a truce but they in no way liked each other. The same went for his Sirius and Remus. "Potions and I have always been the worst of enemies."

Sirius laughed and nodded. "Not many like the class. Even Remus, who's the smartest of us, doesn't like it, even though he always gets an O." Sirius shrugged. "I've just always been good at it."

_Why didn't I know that?_ Harry asked himself. Harry knew there were things about Sirius that he didn't know, and one of those things was his Potions ability. It made Harry determined to find out all he could.

"So, you master Potions_ and_ Transfiguration, Remus is great at Defence Against the Dark Arts, what about James and Peter?"

"Remus is great at everything, but he really works at it, unlike most of us. James it at the top of Transfiguration, Lily is brilliant at Charms and Peter…err…" Sirius looked at loss for words and Harry shook his head with a smile and let it drop.

"So, how about I help you with your homework?"

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	3. Chapter 3

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Three. **

Lily Marie Evans smiled at Hermione when they were away from the boys. "Be careful around them, ok? They can get carried away and are huge pranksters."

Hermione smirked and glanced behind her when she felt Harry's familiar glare. He was so damn protective. But it was mutual. "For some reason, they remind me of Harry's Godfather."

Of course they do. Jeez, Granger, it IS Harry's Godfather after all. Hermione smiled at Lily as they entered the dorm room. The breath left Hermione as she stared at the bed, where in the future she would find Lavender Brown naked and dead. Strangled and bloody. Mione bit back a whimper and smiled wearily at Lily as she led Hermione to the bed she would use. 

Thankfully it was far away from Lavender's.

Lily glanced up at Hermione and smiled. "Don't worry, Hermione, Hogwarts isn't that bad once you get used to it. Though, I advise you to mostly stick with the Gryffindors. There is a huge house rivalry with the Slytherins. It's silly really, but some students are VERY religious about it."

Lily laughed as she pulled back the curtains on the windows to show a fall scene. Lily turned and smiled at Hermione. "As long as you stay on the Marauders' good side there is really nothing that can…" Lily trailed off and made a disgusted face. "Sorry about that, but you just DON'T jinx these things. EVER."

Hermione giggled and re-grew her trunk. She opened it and quickly checked that all her things were still in one piece. When Hermione shut and locked her trunk with out taking anything out Lily gaped.

"What?" Hermione asked.

"You're not unpacking!" She said. Hermione blinked at her then shrugged.

"So? Is it an absolute necessity?" Hermione asked. All the girls in her time kept packed up.

So many had been either leaving, or they had been dying.

"Well, it is kind of strange…" Lily admitted. Hermione smiled and shook her head.

"I'll unpack later. Just don't feel like it right now." Hermione stretched and fell onto her bed. She groaned under her breath when her stomach growled at her. "I'm hungry," she complained lightly. She couldn't remember when she had forced Harry to eat last, so that meant he would be hungry as well, even if he wouldn't admit it.

"Well, if you want you can ask the Marauders to get you some food, they know very well where the kitchens are."

Hermione grinned and nodded her head. "Yes, that is a great idea, thank you. I know that Harry hasn't eaten either and he will be getting hungry soon as well."

"You are very close to your brother, aren't you?" Lily asked and Hermione noted the slightly awed tone in Harry's mother's voice. Hermione smiled again.

"Yes, I am. Harry is my best friend in the entire world. No one I have met since has been able to change that." _Not even Ron._ The thought came and Hermione cursed herself silently. It was true, of course, but all thoughts of Ron were tainted with death. With murder.

"It shows, when you are together. The two of you sort of remind me of James and Sirius; it's like they can read each other's minds."

"Really? Well, I can't read Harry's mind, no one can. But we are all sure he can read ours." _It was how he found out about Ron._

Lily laughed. "I hate people that can do that. It is like they can see everything about you by just looking. The Headmaster is like that. It is very creepy."

"I know what you mean. I noticed that myself." Hermione agreed and Lily smiled at her. Hermione stretched her arms and laughed.

"So you think that they'll get us some food?" She asked, bringing them back to topic.

"Yes. James and Sirius won't have a problem with it. Remus isn't with them tonight, though. His mother is ill so he went home to visit her."

_Clever Lily._ Hermione thought to herself as she gazed out of the window. She couldn't help but wonder if Lily actually knew about Remus' monthly Wolfiness or if she was just telling Hermione so that she didn't ask. _But what would you do if you really knew?_ She asked herself and followed Lily out of the dorm room.

As Hermione entered the Common Room she wondered how painful the transformations were for Remus. She remembered him telling the Trio that Padfoot, Prongs and Wormtail helped to level him when they were with him. She also remembered that the transformations were more painful then ever in the twelve years since Prongs died until he had access to the Wolfsbane Potion.

Hermione and Lily stopped as James came out of the boy's dorm. "Hey, Flower, Mione," James said.

Lily rolled her eyes even as she smiled and slid her arm around his waist. "Hermione's hungry, love, and she figures Harry is, too."

James smiled and kissed Lily lightly. "Food is not a problem, Wormtail and I will get you both some."

"Thank you, James," Hermione said. She glanced around the Common Room then back to James. "I can go with you if you like," she offered.

James and Peter exchanged a glance and Mione ground her teeth. She had forgotten about the Rat. Though it was her belief that Peter Pettigrew deserved to be rotting in Azkaban she was still pleased with how things had turned out.

Padfoot had gotten a little carried away after Harry had closed in on him. There had barely been enough of the Rat to take to St. Mungo's. Pettigrew had died not even twenty-four hours later. The classification of his death? Wild Animal Attack. The story had run in the papers for weeks. Padfoot had been quite pleased with himself, while Sirius had just been glad that it was over.

"That is alright, we can do this faster on our own," James said with a cheery smile. "You girls can stay here, talk about school or something. We'll be back shortly."

"Alright," Hermione agreed, acting defeated. She really would like to talk to James. Find out just HOW like Harry (or visa versa depending on the point of view) he truly was. When they were gone Hermione sighed in annoyance. "Do I give off some appearance that all I can and will talk about is school related?"

"Ignore them, that is all I can suggest. James and Sirius seem to believe that if you have a high IQ all you are able to talk about is school, which doesn't make sense because they and Remus are amongst the smartest in our year."

"Let me guess," Hermione drawled. "Remus is always going at them to do their homework."

"You got that all from one meeting?" Lily asked with genuine shock.

"Considering the first thing I hard from James and Sirius was _'I didn't do it,'_ it was a pretty easy guess."

_You can't tell, you can't tell_. Hermione repeated the mantra in her head. It didn't help much because it was so tempting to tell. Hermione more than most knew the dangers of Time Travel. She also knew that telling her best friend's mom the truth about who they are and what will happen could have a more disastrous affect. Harry might not be her best friend anymore.

_Purely selfish,_ Mione thought to herself. _You don't want the world to end up worse than it already was. You don't want to lose Harry._

Lily glanced at one of the fireplaces and dragged Hermione with her. "Come on; meet the girls in our dorm!"

Hermione met the three girls that shared her new dorm room. Matilda Brown, long brown hair, bright purple eyes. Matilda reminded Mione strongly of Lavender. Which made sense because if Mione remembered clearly Lavender had had a favorite aunt named Matilda.

Alice Prewett was a pure-blooded witch with short dark brown hair and blue eyes. Ashley Street was a half-blood witch, the blood coming from her mother's line. Ashley had very light blond hair with half a dozen different colours streaked in it. She had streaked her hair blue, pink, red, green, black and purple.

"Nice hair," Hermione commented.

"Thanks," Ashley smiled at her. "I've added a new colour to it every month since my birthday in April."

"It's really cool," Mione told Ashley. Ashley beamed.

"So, like," Matilda interrupted. "You came with that totally hot James look-alike, right?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow and glanced at Lily. Harry Potter's mother looked less than pleased with the change in conversation. Most likely because they were talking about her boyfriend, Mione decided.

"Yes, actually," Hermione told Matilda. "Harry is my step-brother."

"You share the same name, though," Alice pointed out.

Hermione shrugged carelessly. "Our parents got married when we were very young. My mother took his name and then they changed mine."

"So you, like, grew up with James' look-alike? What was that like? How many girlfriends has he had? What does he look for in a girl?"

_What makes you think he's straight?_ The words almost popped out of her mouth out of spite. She hated people talking about Harry almost as much as she knew Harry hated people talking about him. If the person actually asking the question had been Lavender then Hermione would have said it and spent the rest of the day laughing at the confused looks that would be tossed around at everything Harry would do.

Of course, Harry would have been furious that she had used him for her own amusement. Before he saw the humor in it, anyway. "He has a name you know. It's Harry."

"Right," Matilda rolled her eyes and flicked her brown hair out of her face. "Anyway, are you going to answer my questions or, like, not?" Matilda glanced up suddenly and gasped. "You're in love with him, aren't you? That's why you won't tell me! You like, totally don't want to share!"

"I am _not_ in love with my brother, Matilda. I just don't think you'll find Harry to be your type."

"How can you think that?" Matilda was actually surprised. "Tall, dark and handsome. He's every girl's type."

Hermione growled under her breath. "I re-iterate, you're not HIS type." Harry had never gone for the air-headed bimbo with a giggle-addiction type. Actually, Harry hadn't really gone for any type of girl.

He had only dated Cho Chang briefly. That had ended in disaster. Then there was the brief thing with Ginny that had happened because of Ron's pushing. It made Hermione sick when she saw the girl she thought of like a sister kissing the Dark Lord's robes.

"Oh?" Matilda asked. "What is his type then?"

"Not you, trust me." Matilda and Hermione stared off with each other as Ashley, Alice and Lily watched with some low level of amusement.

"Protective Little Sister, eh?" Ashley asked with a light tease. Hermione gave her a dead look.

"You have no bloody idea." They left it at that and the conversation switched to classes.

A few minutes later James and Peter came rushing in and pulled the two girls from the conversations. "Sorry, girls," James said charmingly. "But we're stealing them for a while." With a nod to the three he dragged Hermione and Lily up to the boys' dorm.

"I hope you're hungry," James grinned. "The elves were very happy to feed new students. We believe they want to make a statement. _You'll never have better food than from here._ Or something like that."

James threw open the dorm room and Sirius and Harry looked up, startled. The knowledge on Harry's face vanished quickly and Hermione knew the wand he had covered disappeared up his sleeve again. Harry looked back to the text, wondering where he had left off. He had been in the middle of describing something when the others had barged in.

"James and Peter got us something to eat, Harry." Hermione scowled when Harry just blinked at her. "You know, food, you eat it. It is good for you."

Harry rolled his eyes and sighed. He didn't know if Hermione was a burden or a blessing, but it was because of her that he was eating regularly. After everything that Harry had seen, his appetite had all but disappeared.

"What are you working on?" Hermione asked as she handed Harry his food.

"Defence," Sirius told her. "Harry's really good at it," Sirius turned his eyes to James. "Better then Remus in some aspects."

"No way. Better then Remy? Is that even possible?"

"Ha-ha," Harry sneered lightly. "I just happen to like Defence." _Just happened to grow up needing it._ "It has always been my best subject, the only one in which I can, and have, beaten Hermione."

"That's because it is the only subject you applied more then sixty percent of your brain to." Harry and Hermione glared at each other like only long-time best friends could do.

"Well, who do they remind me of?" Lily muttered, tossing a glare at the snickering James and Sirius.

"I really hate reminding people of someone," Harry said honestly. He broke from the glaring contest with Hermione and tossed a boyish grin at Lily.

"Well," Lily spoke calmly. "That is going to be almost impossible. You will naturally remind people of James because of your looks."

Harry sighed and shook his head. "Yeah, you're right, I know that. Still doesn't mean I will like it." He had been compared to his father all his life.

"That's ok," James said. "I hate being compared to others as well, even if it is just looks." _It makes you feel inadequate._ Harry heard the thought flash through James' mind. But then the thought was gone, as if James had pushed it away.

_What would James-Bloody-Potter have to feel inadequate about?_ Harry thought. He was stunned beyond believe.

"Thanks for the food," Harry said with a smile. "I didn't realize how hungry I was."

"You never do," Hermione murmured. Harry tossed a piece of toast at her and Hermione snickered. "I speak no lies, Your Majesty," she teased and jumped away from him when his arm shot out to grab her.

"Ignore her, that is my advice." Harry told the others. "Otherwise you will be wishing you could slice your head off and leave it in her book bag."

"Eww, gross, Harry." Hermione wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Where do you hear those things? I know you don't come up with them yourself."

"From Dray mostly," Harry admitted. Hermione rolled her eyes and walked towards Harry's bed and trunk. She sat down and smiled at James and Sirius. "I am going to ask you to make sure Harry unpacks, otherwise he will keep everything in his trunk and not know where anything is."

"That sounds like something Remus would do," Peter said with a squeak. Hermione's eyes ghosted over him and she smiled lightly. Only Harry recognized how fake the smile was. "Although, he would know where everything was and just live out of his trunk to keep our dorm clean."

"Not that it helps much," James and Sirius said together. They started laughing at the rolled eyes that Lily and Hermione gave them.

Hermione smiled at Harry, who smiled back. "I'm going to bed; it has been a long day and probably will be tomorrow as well." Hermione walked past Harry and kissed his cheek. "See to it that you actually sleep, love," she said and smiled when Harry rolled his eyes.

"Stop worrying, Mione."

"Can't help it, Harry. You're my big brother," Hermione teased as she left, dragging Lily with her. "G'night, everyone."

"Your sister is really protective, isn't she?" Sirius asked, staring after the girls.

"Yes, Hermione has always been there and with Voldemort rising…" Harry trailed off with a shrug. Hermione was the same way in their own time and Voldemort was dead there. "She doesn't want to see me dead, and the feeling is mutual."

"Do you know anyone who has died from You-Know-Who?" Peter asked and Harry nodded.

"Lord Voldemort is not just a problem in England. We know many people who have suffered from him." _Like Sirius_, Harry thought with a sad look.

"Yeah, this topic is making me miserable," Sirius said with a boyish grin. "I'm going to sleep. Harry, as cute as you are, I'm going to have to ask you to get out of my bed." Harry blushed and quickly jumped off of Sirius' bed. He glanced out the window when he pulled out his pajamas. He knew now why she had made such a hasty get-a-way. The moon was rising.

That meant the Marauders were anxious to get to Moony.

OoOoO

"Is he asleep yet?" James asked glancing at the bed Harry was in.

"How the bloody hell would I know, mate? I'm over here. Wormtail, go see if he is asleep."

"Is this how it is going to be with him in our dorm?" Peter squeaked before he transformed into his Rat form.

"YES!" James and Sirius hissed.

"We can't get caught, Wormy," James reminded.

"Otherwise it is Azkaban for us all." Sirius shuddered in the dark.

"Don't remind me," Peter whispered when he changed back. "He's asleep."

"Good, let's go," Sirius tossed back his blankets and grabbed his clothes so he could change.

"Come on, come on," James urged. "It is already late."

The three Marauders snuck to the door and silently closed it behind them.

Harry opened his emerald eyes and shook his head in amusement. He had been asleep until he felt Wormtail climb into his bed to check if he was asleep. Harry climbed out of his bed and opened the window to climb onto the balcony.

He sat there and watched the grounds until he noticed the Whomping Willow stop moving.

"You're not asleep," he heard behind him. Harry reached out an arm and dragged his sister down beside him.

"Wormtail woke me up."

"Ahh, James and Sirius had him check if you were asleep?" Hermione guessed and Harry nodded. Hermione rested her head on Harry's shoulder and glanced watched the tree with Harry.

"Voldemort is still around in this time, Har."

"Are you telling me not to do anything stupid?"

"Or rash," Hermione agreed. "If we have a run-in with him, Harry…You cannot let him even guess who you are…and you can't kill him."

"Then let us hope I don't run into him, ever again."

Harry leaned back against the wall and wrapped an arm around Hermione. "So, how strange do you think this will be?"

Hermione laughed and shook her head. "At least we know where all the classes are."

"But remember, Mione," Harry teased. "We're NEW students."

"Bloody hell, I don't want to pretend to get lost."

"Have you ever gotten lost before?"

"No, not even in our first year." _While you and Ron did quite often the first week._

"You can talk about him, Hermione, I don't mind."

"I don't feel like talking about him. I just sometimes think about him."

"That's not a crime. I do think about him, too."

"You don't show it, not ever do you hint that you are thinking about him. You're always so in control."

"Mione, my best friend, my brother, sold me to the one man who wanted to ruin my life so completely."

"Yet, you won, you lived. Even after everything Tom Riddle put you through, Harry, you were still stronger."

"Yes, I know…"

They fell into a comfortable silence until Harry felt Hermione's breathing even and he guessed she was asleep. "You've been really worried about me haven't you, Mione?" Harry asked softly. He knew it was true and he was going to make sure she didn't have to worry about him again.

Harry picked her up and carried her back into his dorm. He glanced around and placed her on Remus' bed. "I hope he doesn't mind. After all, it is not like he will be using it tonight…" Harry climbed into his own bed and fell back asleep, luckily with no nightmares.

OoOoO

Sirius stretched his arms out as they left Moony early the next morning. "Think I can skip class this morning?" He asked as he rolled his shoulders.

"I doubt it, Padfoot," James said. They both watched Wormtail hurry off, claiming that he got the shower first. "What's up with Petey?" James asked as they walked at a slower pace.

"Maybe he's got a girlfriend he's not telling us about," Sirius offered. The two friends looked at each other and burst out in laughter. When they calmed down James glanced at Sirius, humor gone from his eyes.

"By the way, Paddy, what was with that cute comment last night?"

Sirius shrugged carelessly. "He's cute," was all he said.

"He looks like me," James persisted and Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Jamie you know you're adorable, you don't need anyone feeding your ego."

"Well, of course, I mean have you looked at me lately?" Sirius snorted and shook his head at his friend's antics.

"Yet, you wonder why Lady Lily was so hesitant to go out with you."

"She just didn't want to admit how much she liked me, cuz we all know she did. Even when she was denying it, and…you got me off topic!"

"That was the point," Sirius admitted as he ran for the Fat Lady, calling out the password.

James shook his head as he raced after his friend. They raced up to their dorm and almost ran into a solid Peter.

"Peter, what the heck?" James demanded. Peter turned to look at James, a surprised glaze in his eyes.

"There is a girl in Remy's bed," Peter answered before turning back to stare at the person.

Sirius and James glanced at the figure and bust out in laughter. They were still laughing when Harry came out of the bathroom in low-slung black pants and with a towel around his shoulders. He ran a hand through his wet black hair and groaned when James moved to wake Hermione.

"You don't want to do that," he advised, making his presence known.

"Why not?" James asked, shaking Hermione's shoulder to wake her up. The next second he had a wand at his throat.

"That'd be why," Harry said. "Don't move though, she's not awake yet and likely to do something violent."

Harry walked towards his sister and carefully removed the wand from her hand. "Hermione," he spoke when he had the wand. When she didn't move or open her eyes he whacked her head lightly with her wand. Hermione's eyes opened and she blinked in confusion.

"I did it again, didn't I?" She asked noticing the laughing Sirius, petrified Pettigrew and stunned James.

"Yes. Luckily you didn't hurt anyone this time."

"Look, Neville should have known better then to sneak up on me." Hermione let out a breath and apologized to James. "I'm sorry about that, but as Harry probably told you, waking me up is a dangerous pastime."

"You act like Mad-Eye Moody trained you or something," James said when he backed away.

"Our parents are big fans of Auror Moody," Hermione informed them. She stood up and hurried towards the door. "I'm going to get ready for class, see you at breakfast." She took off but before the door closed she turned back and winked at Harry. "You really should put on a shirt, Bro." Harry sighed before fixing Remus' bed.

"Sorry, she couldn't sleep last night and I didn't know where else to put her when she finally fell asleep. It is not like I could bring her back to her own bed…" Harry trailed off with a blush as he shrugged helplessly.

"Remy won't mind," Sirius said then glanced at the bathroom and Peter. "Me first!" He exclaimed and took off. Peter squeaked his protest as he ran after his friend, only to be locked out of the bathroom.

Half an hour later the four of them left their dorm and met Hermione, Lily and Remus in the Common Room.

"Ready for breakfast?" Lily asked and the teenagers nodded.

"So Harry, Hermione," Remus said as they walked to the Great Hall. "New country, new house, new school, new dorms and classmates, is anything similar to your old school?"

Harry and Hermione looked at each other, solemn looks on both their faces. "No," they answered. "Everything is completely new."

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	4. Chapter 4

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Four.**

Harry felt like hiding behind Hermione when they entered the Great Hall. Everyone was already staring.

"Oh, yes," James said with a laugh. "I should probably warn you that the Hogwarts Gossip System is the most effective in England, if not the most accurate. Anything you want everyone to know, you tell one person. Within the hour half the school knows. That also goes for things you don't want the world to know. It's a win-lose situation…or maybe it's a lose-lose one; I was never too sure on that."

"Glad to know that hasn't changed," Hermione whispered just low enough for only Harry to hear.

"So, pretty much you tell no one anything unless you are looking for the attention?" Harry asked rhetorically.

"Yes," Lily giggled as they sat down at the Gryffindor Table. "Though it is safe to tell your friends things as long as you have the area completely secured."

"Ohh, that makes me _so_ comfortable," Harry snickered and Lily smiled at him.

"The Gossip might be horrible, but this place is home away from home."

Harry smiled and finished a piece of toast under Hermione's watchful eye. When Harry finished, Hermione glanced around the great hall and mentally rolled her eyes at the glaring Slytherins.

"Lily," she whispered. "Are those the Slytherins you mentioned?" Hermione nodded towards the table. Lily glanced over and nodded her head.

"Yes, those are them. They are not the most agreeable lot in the school. It is usually best to stay away from them."

"That's because they are Slimy Slytherins," James grinned wickedly.

"Slimy, Sneaky Slytherins," countered a mischievous Sirius.

"Slimy, Sneaky, Snotty Slytherins."

"Slimy, Sneaky, Snotty, Snaky Slytherins."

"Slimy, Sneaky, Snotty, Snaky, Slit-"

"ALRIGHT, THAT IS ENOUGH!" Lily shouted and James turned to glare at her.

"That's the second time in two days I've lost to him! Lily! I could have won!"

"You were giving me a headache, and it is too early to want to pull out your bloody vocal cords."

"I can just see her during labor," Harry whispered to Hermione, but Remus who was sitting opposite them heard and laughed quietly. But not quietly enough to evade Lily's dark glare.

"Is something funny, Remus?" She growled and Remus shook his head, trying to rein his laughter in.

"No, Lily, nothing."

"Good, then you can shut up and let me hear the Headmaster." Lily turned her attention to the Headmaster, along with everyone else but Hermione.

Remus glanced up at her when he finally stopped laughing and winked before turning his complete attention to the Headmaster of Hogwarts. Dumbledore's speech was short while he told all students about Harry and Hermione. Harry found it pointless as the school already mostly knew about Harry and Hermione's transfer to Hogwarts.

When Dumbledore sat down, McGonagall got up and walked towards them. She handed them both their schedules with a good luck. "I hope you don't have too much to catch up on," McGonagall said.

"Don't worry, Professor," the smile on Hermione's face was contagious as Harry soon found himself smiling, too. "I'm sure it will not be a problem."

"Absolutely not, Hermione's a genius." Harry knew how to be charming; he had learnt from the two most charismatic Wizards he knew. So it came as no surprise when McGonagall shook her head with a light, barely-there smile. When McGonagall left Hermione turned and stuffed a slice of bacon into Harry's mouth.

While Harry worked to keep himself from choking, Hermione answered James' question about the bacon with a grin. "There was no more toast left," she shrugged and folded up her schedule before standing up. "We had best go and get our things for class; it should be starting any minute."

Lily watched Harry's sister with a slight frown. The girl had stolen her line. Well, not exactly, but close enough that Lily pouted into her goblet before standing up.

"Yes, Hermione is right. Hurry up or you could be late." The two girls walked off, completely missing the amused glances sent their way from the group of males.

Then Harry noticed another male eyeing Hermione and jumped to follow her. Hermione always said he was really protective of her, completely overbearing at times, but Harry couldn't help it. He had gained three sisters in the last seven years; Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley and Nymphadora Tonks. The only one left for Harry to look after was Hermione. Ginny was dead, as traitors often ended up, and Tonks didn't need Harry to look after her now that her boyfriend was taking over that job.

Harry wasn't ready to lose another sister and even though he knew Hermione would never _ever_ betray him there was still the threat of another male taking her away. Harry wasn't willing to risk that, not after what had nearly happened with her last, and only, boyfriend.

"You need to give me my schedule, Mione," Harry scolded and thanked her enthusiastically when she handed it to him. "Charms first, then Healing," he all but sang. Annoying Hermione was a much-loved pastime for Harry since Ron had turned on them.

"You forget the depressing Double Potions," James said from behind. Harry turned and grinned.

"Nope, I'm just trying to gain temporary amnesia. If you keep reminding me, though, it will never happen."

Sirius stared at Harry and shook his head. It was really creepy because Harry reminded him strongly of James and their Maraudering ways, but at the same time Harry was completely different. It was only Harry's, "Is there something on my face," comment that made Sirius realize he had been staring.

"Uh, no, nothing," Sirius almost stuttered, but he contained that and the blush that was trying to take over. Sirius Orion Black NEVER blushed. "Just can't get over the strange clone-likeness." He chuckled when Harry groaned and congratulated himself on the save from certain embarrassment.

Harry and the Marauders collected their books for their first lesson and headed back to meet the girls. Sirius glanced back at the bathroom door and sighed.

The image of Harry half-naked was permanently glued to his brain. It was a really nice image as well. Harry was all wet and hot and…_Ookay, Black, control your hormones, mate._

That blush thing that was completely foreign to Sirius started up again when he noticed Harry toss him a confused glance.

Harry heard the _random_ thought pass through Sirius and eyed his younger Godfather curiously. From what he had heard his Godfather never had a problem with getting whoever he wanted, male or female alike. When Harry had first found that out he had blushed like mad before admitting he himself went both ways. The fact seemed to relieve Sirius, who Harry figured had thought he would have been disowned or something stupid like that.

Harry glanced at Sirius out of the corner of his eye and noticed Sirius staring at his feet as if they were the most fascinating things in the world. Hermione, Lily and Remus were talking about classes, something Harry had a feeling would happen often now that Hermione had some friends on the same intellectual level as herself. James was studying a piece of parchment and grinning like mad before folding it up and tucking it away. James glanced over at Sirius and raised an eyebrow at his friends' determination to stare at nothing but his sneakers.

James glanced around and smirked to himself before raising his voice. "SIRIUS YOU'RE GOING TO WALK INTO A WALL!"

Sirius glanced up and frowned at the wall a foot in front of him, his face burning red. James howled with laughter as he stared at his red friend…_wait a minute, since when did he blush?_ James blinked as the confusion settled in. In all the years that James had known Sirius, well, ok, actually in all the years since they had started Hogwarts, James had never seen his best friend so red. Sirius rarely blushed when they were younger and since they had gotten older he was too sure of his own charm to let anything discomfort him to the point of embarrassment.

"Oops, when did that wall get there?" Sirius asked in a fake-clueless voice and Harry snickered.

"I didn't think the book was actually serious when it said walls moved in this place."

"Well, if the doors do, the walls might as well."

"Oh shut up," Lily growled, glaring at Harry and Sirius. Both looked utterly angelic. Lily huffed and rolled her emerald eyes before entering the classroom.

Tiny Professor Flitwick smiled when they entered and as soon as the bell rang things got started.

OoOoO

Harry wasn't surprised to learn that Madam Poppy Pomfrey was still as ruthless as ever. The fact that she hadn't changed relieved Harry more then he had thought. She was one constant he had been able to count on no matter how bruised and damaged he was. She had been there from the beginning to patch him up and scold him for his behavior, usually at the same time as well.

Harry relaxed into his seat at lunch. He was so tired that it wasn't until all four Marauders had fallen utterly quiet that Harry figured something was wrong, or, knowing Sirius, something was about to happen. Harry moved in his seat, grabbing his drink, and shifted his attention secretly on the Slytherins.

They were all eating though the one that he knew to be Severus Snape seemed to be glaring at them between bites. The suspicion in his eyes was something Harry was used to seeing from the Potions Master. When the desert arrived the Marauders barely ate as their attention was discreetly locked on the Slytherins.

When the first scream filled the air the Slytherins held everyone's attention. After all, it is not often that you see a student blow up to the size of a balloon and start floating above the table; it's probably rarer than seeing a hated aunt do the same. The female screamed again when the other students of her house started floating.

When Harry noticed Bellatrix Black, for she wasn't married yet, join the floating teenagers he turned his head and continued eating. It wouldn't do anyone any good to blow her up, unfortunately. It was bad enough all the dishes at their table had started floating, and Harry was sure that wasn't a side effect from the Marauders prank.

Hermione glared at Bellatrix behind her goblet but when it tore from her hands she gave Harry a concerned look and hesitated at touching him when she saw the pure hatred on his face, in his eyes. There were only three people that warranted that kind of reaction from Harry. Two were blissfully dead and the third was so insane that she was locked in an underground cell in St. Mungo's. Or, at least in their time they were. At the present time they were all running free.

"WHAT THE HELL?!?!" James shouted when he noticed the floating dishes. At his exclamation they all crashed to the table.

As the Slytherins landed they let off a sound that reminded Harry of a gunshot. Harry didn't notice that Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy didn't join the floating teens. But they sure as hell noticed. Both Slytherins glared at the Marauders, who were leaving the Great Hall.

McGonagall was also watching them, but her attention was more focused on her two new students and where they truly came from. Albus had informed her before lunch started. She had not idea that it was even possible to travel so far back in time. She knew that with the Time Turners you could Travel up to 24 hours, but to go back twenty years? Minerva couldn't wrap her mind around it. _So why were they so calm?_ She wondered as she watched them leave her sight.

Harry knew they were being watched. After years of it, and though he still hated it, he was used to being watched. So Harry ignored the stares as he listened to Lily dissect the prank the four boys had pulled.

"And really! What was the point of our dishes floating?" Lily demanded. "It is not as if everyone didn't already know the four of you pulled the bloody prank!"

"But Lily," James insisted. "We didn't float the dishes!"

Lily gave him a hard glare but James didn't back down. For once, he hadn't done what he was being accused of doing, although that didn't usually stop him from denying it if he did do it. "We didn't do that, Lily."

"Yeah, right." Lily rolled her emerald eyes and Harry winced. He really didn't want to get James in trouble. If what he had heard was true then Lily's temper was almost as bad as his own and when Harry's temper flared up, well… You just had to look at Voldemort to understand the consequences of pissing him off.

"Maybe it wasn't them," Hermione intervened. She really didn't want James getting in trouble because of Harry, but she couldn't say anything about Harry's Magic. "They did look as surprised as we did at the floating dishes. That kind of surprise you cannot fake."

Lily glared at the boys again as they neared the Fat Lady. "Fine, maybe you're right. They did look shocked._ Galloping Gargoyles_." She told the Fat Lady quickly.

Harry took off to his dorm to exchange his books when they all entered the Common Room. "What is the Potions Professor like?" He asked Sirius in their dorm.

Harry raised an eyebrow when Sirius groaned. "Professor Twiddledum is new this year. Professor Madwit was killed by one of the Voldemort's supporters near the end of the year and we were given Twiddledum as a replacement." Sirius shook his head in disgust. "The man is psychotic. I have no idea _how_ he became the Potions Master. Most of the time I don't believe that he even knows what he is talking about."

Remus groaned and glared at his friend before Sirius could start ranting. "Just because you've known everything we're learning since before you even started Hogwarts doesn't give you permission to talk back to a Professor, Sirius."

_Oops,_ Remus thought when he recognized the fire flare up in Sirius eyes. _Probably shouldn't have said that. He's still sore about the aconite incident. Yeah, like I'd be foolish enough to actually bloody well _EAT_ it! _

"When the Professor is an idiot it does. Remus he didn't even know that aconite is a Werewolf's catnip! Merlin! He thought it was poisonous!"

"And you just _so_ kindly had to correct him," Remus rolled his eyes in annoyance. He glanced discreetly at Harry, who was more interested finding his books then he was in the argument.

"Of course. Merlin, did you think I would let Snivellus do so?" The honest bafflement in Sirius' voice had Remus growling in disgust.

"All right, lovebirds," James said as he whacked both of them with his bag. "The spat's over. I think you have officially scarred Harry for life."

"Hahaha," the sneer came from both Sirius and Remus. Remus picked up his bag and Sirius noticed Harry watching them with interest now. When Sirius winked, telling Harry he had been caught, the younger boy blushed and glanced away. Harry got to his feet and the four of them headed for Potions. Peter was heading to Divination because he didn't get the marks he needed for Potions.

Harry glanced at Sirius and Remus out of the corner of his eye. James' playful comment about his two best friends had made him freeze inside. _Why, _though, Harry did not want to find out. He knew from the future that Sirius and Remus were never lovers but maybe his and Hermione's presence in the past changed that? The thought made Harry sick. He knew the dangers of changing time as well as Hermione did.

But that wasn't…_NO!_ Harry shook his head. He would not follow that train of thought. Ever!

The group of teenagers entered the mostly empty Potions class and found seats. Harry and Hermione sat in front of James and Sirius, who sat in the back. When the class was full and the bell rang Professor Twiddledum entered and Harry shuddered at the site of him. The Professor _had_ to be related to Lockhart, there was no other explanation for the clothing style.

"Scary, huh?" Sirius whispered in his ear and Harry nodded.

"Well now," Twiddledum said. "It is good that you came now," he said to Hermione and Harry, "for we are about to start a project that will last a full month." Many of the Seventh Years groaned.

Harry glanced down at the parchment that Hermione had scribbled on and passed his way. '_A potion that takes a month to make. Please Harry, tell me you know.'_

Harry frowned at the note. Never before in class had they created a potion that took so long…but that was just in class. Harry glanced at Hermione and saw that she was watching the Professor with interest, or so it would look to anyone who didn't know her so well. She was bored.

'_What do you take me for?' _He wrote. _'An idiot? Really Mione, I know very well what he was talking about.'_

'_Good, I thought I would have a heart attack if you couldn't figure it out.'_

Harry shook his head at his friend's dramatics. It looked like they would be starting off this class with a bang. The Polyjuice Potion was one they had used often since their first time when they were twelve. During their last year there had been many times that Harry had had to hide who he was, especially when going out in public.

'_Ha-bloody-ha, Little Sister.'_ Harry smiled when Hermione rolled her eyes and stuffed the parchment in her bag.

"So today, when I give you your partner, you will be starting to make the Polyjuice Potion. For today, however, I want you to write a list of all the ingredients that you know you will need. Then try to make a list of the steps. If you don't remember anything from last class, well, hopefully your partner will. You will hand in the parchment at the end of class and I will hand it back next class with the corrections."

"Bet you he goes though teacher's guide to do the corrections," Harry heard Sirius mutter to James.

"Merlin, this is ridiculous. And did he say he was pairing us up?" James glanced around the classroom with a scowl.

"I think he did. What is ridiculous about it is that he will still need the book no matter in how much detail we went over it on Tuesday."

"I think the potion is permanently locked in my brain," James grumbled as he rubbed his eyes.

Twiddledum glanced around the classroom and smiled. "When the potions are completed, if you transform properly you pass. If not, we send you to Madame Pomfrey and pray that she can fix you."

Harry smirked when Hermione groaned under her breath and brought her hands to her face. Harry leaned over and whispered, "Don't forget the tail," in her ear. Hermione's eyes narrowed as she elbowed him in the gut.

"Now, partners. Nott, you're with Jugson, MacNair and Avery. Snape and Malfoy, Black and Bl…" Twiddledum glanced up at Sirius and winced. "No, I'd rather not have my class set on fire. Ms. Black you're with LeStrange. Mr. Black, no, you are not with Potter."

Sirius and James grumbled under their breaths, both glaring at their teacher.

"Potter, you are with Lupin, and you will fail if I see him doing all the work."

"He can actually see?" James asked Sirius, who shrugged, still glaring at the Professor.

"Evans, you will work with Ms. Granger, I do hope you will be able to catch her up."

"Considering we have learnt nothing I don't see how that's a problem," Remus muttered.

"Mr. Granger, you will work with Mr. Black. Hopefully he paid enough attention last class to know what he is doing."

Harry glanced behind him at the seething Sirius. "Don't worry," Harry said cheerfully. "We'll pass it, no problem."

Sirius glanced at Harry and the glare turned into a smile. "Yeah, it is easy enough if you are not a complete dunderhead."

Hermione gasped out a laugh at the term and Harry was reminded of their first ever potions class when Professor Snape had called them, and every other student in Hogwarts, dunderheads. It was a term Harry had never heard from anyone else before or after. He especially never thought he would hear the term come from his Godfather, of all people.

Twiddledum finished giving out partners and Sirius took Hermione's seat while the girl sat beside Lily and Remus sat beside James. When silence rained on the class again Twiddledum sat at his desk and picked up his book.

"So the Polyjuice Potion is the potion that turns you into someone else for an hour," Sirius told Harry. "It's actually kind of hard but…"

"Don't worry, Sirius, this is one potion that I actually know how to make."

Sirius turned a dull shade of pink and glanced at the parchment. "Ok, it's just, you said you weren't very good at it, and I wanted to make sure you know what we were doing."

"I know, and thank you, it's sweet. It's true that I'm not very good at potions. I think the fact that my professor hated me had something to do with that, but we're ok for this one. Polyjuice was a very popular potion with my friends back home."

"Mkay, cool. Then the ingredients are easy enough. It is the steps that usually cause the problems."

"Right, the Lacewing flies have to be stewed for twenty one days. We can get those from the student supplies, right?"

"Yes, and the leeches and knotgrass. We will have to pick the fluxweed…damn, the full moon was last night…" Sirius shifted in his seat so that he was facing James and Remus. "What are we going to do about the fluxweed?" He asked. "There is not another full moon this month."

The two males frowned even as Lily's hand went up.

"Yes Ms. Evans?" Twiddledum asked.

"What about the fluxweed, Professor? We missed the full moon."

"Very good, Ms. Evans," Twiddledum said. "I was hoping someone would ask. As it happens, I took it upon myself to pick the fluxweed for this class. Now, do continue."

"Well," Sirius grumbled. "I guess that covers that."

"Alright then," Harry said. "And he will have to give us the powdered horn of a Bicorn and the shredded skin of a Boomslang."

The class went on as Harry and Sirius worked out the steps for the potion. The bell had finally rung and they were packing up when Narcissa Black walked up to them, her voice and appearance silkily sweet.

"Interesting, isn't it," she cooed. "How Uncle Nick has the same opinion of you that the rest of us do."

When Sirius went rigid James pushed himself up to his friend's side and smiled down at Narcissa, the innocent look not matching his personality. "Does that mean it is true that you all share one brain? I heard tell that that is why you are all so tiresome. Having only part of a brain, split up between a dozen or more tedious personnel must wreak havoc on your overly-sized egos. Or so I've heard, although I've never had to test the theory myself. What is it actually like?"

James' smooth, innocently curious voice had the hair on Harry's neck standing up in a very cat-like way. Hermione tensed beside him and Harry saw Remus do the same thing. But it was Sirius' reaction that confused him the most. The eldest Black brother completely relaxed. Harry knew his Godfather was good at hiding things from most people, but that rarely, if ever, worked against Harry. But he looked honest-to-God relaxed as he stood beside James.

…_Strange… _Harry thought but that didn't stop his light grin when Narcissa stormed away to her confused Slytherin housemates.

The purebloods strolled off, their heads held high, and Hermione gave into her giggling. Her amusement was contagious because moments later the entire group of Gryffindors was laughing as they made their way out of the Potions classroom and out for dinner.

XxXxX

"So how was your first day at Hogwarts?" Remus asked the two time travelers as all the seventh years sat around a fire. Hermione rolled her head and smiled sweetly.

"It has been fun," Hermione smiled at Remus. "_And_ Harry has done all his homework."

"Ha-ha," Harry groaned dryly. The Boy-Who-Would-Live gave his sister an annoyed look and rolled his eyes.

"I have a question, though," Hermione glanced at Sirius with a frown. "Why does Professor Twiddledum not like you?"

When Sirius growled under his breath and glared at the fire Hermione winced… "Oh," she muttered and glanced at Harry with a helpless expression.

"You know how your grandparents don't exactly like you being a Witch?" Sirius asked her and Hermione nodded. "Well, my family doesn't like that I'm in Gryffindor."

"Ohh…" Hermione said. She had no idea how Twiddledum was related to Sirius, but them being related answered for a lot. She and Harry had both heard story's about Sirius' family that made her regret asking.

Sirius shrugged carelessly. "It's no problem. They've still got Reggie to drool over and mold. At the moment, I'd hate to be him." Sirius laughed for a moment before relaxing in his chair again.

As they sat in front of the fire, Lily and Remus playing chess, there was a _very_ familiar flash that had Harry wincing.

"Say cheese!" Matilda exclaimed as she removed the camera from her face. "That was cute, can I take another one?"

"No Matilda, you cannot, because then you would be breaking the most important rule of the Wizarding World," James grinned mischievously.

"Oh, yes?" Matilda asked with a smirk. "And what would that be?"

"Never take pictures of James Potter unless he is playing Quidditch." James said seriously and his friends snickered while Lily rolled her eyes in disgust.

"Who's to say I was taking the picture of you anyway? I'm more interested in your look-alike," Matilda winked at Harry, who went suddenly red.

"Well, Harry doesn't want his picture taken, Matilda, so bugger off." James gave the girl a glare but Matilda didn't budge. Instead she sent Harry a smile and a wink and slid over to him.

"You don't mind do you?" she asked with a seductive smile. Harry raised an eyebrow at her and brought up his Charms textbook.

"Actually, I'm trying to work."

Matilda pouted at Harry, who smiled apologetically. He was way too nice for his own good. "Alright, I'll let it be," Matilda smiled again. "I'm Matilda by the way, Matilda Brown."

"I'm Harry," the young man responded before turning back to his Charms book. Matilda pouted again and narrowed her eyes when she saw Hermione smirking and shaking her head. Matilda walked off and Harry raised his head again. "Is she always like that?" he asked the Marauders. They all nodded and James and Sirius laughed when Harry groaned.

… _TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	5. Chapter 5

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Five.**

The days went on and one week turned into two, and then three. Harry and Hermione had done little research about time travel, preferring to enjoy the rare gift that they had been given. Halfway through the first week of October Sirius and Harry were ready to test their Polyjuice.

"So," Sirius asked with a smirk. "Who do you want to turn into?"

"I don't know." Harry replied as he glanced around the classroom. His eyes darted over his new (old) friends and he had to laugh softly at the worry on Hermione's face as she took the hair from Lily. "Who do you want to turn into?"

Sirius smiled at Harry and leaned back in his seat so that his face got in the way of Remus' writing. "Hey, Moony," he grinned cheekily and tugged a piece of hair from his Werewolf friend.

"Hi Padfoot," Remus said with a scowl and tugged one of Sirius' hairs before the young man could protest. The resident Dog reached up to touch his hair, his eyes going wide and moist as he pouted at his friend.

"Remy," Sirius whined. "That was mean!"

"Payback's a bitch, huh?"

"I hate you," Sirius declared and turned to sit properly.

"I guess that means you and me," James said with a smile to Harry. "Though it's not like we'll look any different, really."

"Oh, well, although I don't think I would like looking like Sirius," Harry smirked when the mentioned male crossed his arms and scowled.

"Now, that's not fair!" Sirius exclaimed distraughtly. "What is this? Pick on Padfoot day?"

"You have to ask?" James asked with an innocent grin. He put Harry's hair into his goblet and glanced at Twiddledum. "Want to see how bad we can confuse him?" He asked Harry and the James Potter-look-alike shrugged.

"Why not?" Harry put James' hair in his goblet and the two drank on three. "Ugh," Harry groaned as he changed. "Now I remember why I don't like this potion." With a final shudder he turned his head and stared at himself.

James (who was really Harry) and Harry (ditto with being James) stared at each other and shuddered. "This is really creepy, you know that, right?"

"Oh, yes," James (Harry) agreed and the two of them tilted their heads. "Very creepy."

"If you think it's creepy from where you're standing, you should see it over here," Sirius commented as he drank his potion. "Gross!" The black haired young man shuddered as his hair turned lighter and his dark eyes turned amber.

After Remus changed the four switched robes so that they would fit better. Harry, who was the smallest was five ten and both Sirius and James were six two, Remus was only an inch taller then Harry. "Do you have any idea how strange this is?" Sirius (Remus) asked his friends. They all nodded as they studied one another.

"Very strange," Harry (James)said and James (Harry) nodded.

The four of them fell silent, as they watched the girls. Hermione refused to take her potion and Lily dressed as _Hermione_ was trying to urge her to drink it. The know-it-all bookworm, the one from the future that is, not the past, refused to drink.

"Ahh, the Gryffindors," Twiddledum said as he came up to them. "I hope you managed better than the Hufflepuffs…" he tossed a nasty glance at Black (Remus). "Though knowing who is in your house, I highly doubt it."

"Which proves how much you actually know, doesn't it?" Potter (Harry) said and Twiddledum turned his glare on the boy.

"Seeing as you have yet to risk taking your potions, I'd say it does."

"That's what you think," Black (Remus) said with a smirk. The four boys picked up their empty goblets and grinned at Twiddledum as the Potions Master gaped like a fish. He turned back and glared at Potter (Harry) and Black (Remus).

"It is to be expected of course, that you switched with someone? The hair in your goblet had better not have been your own."

"Hey, now!" Lupin (Sirius) intervened. "That would have been considered cheating, Professor, something we _have_ _never _and _will never_ take part in!"

"It is really not something you should be accusing us of, Professor," Granger (James) said. "Word could leak that you are biased and unfair in your teaching methods. A lot of things could happen to you if it did."

"And where did you hear that, boy?" Twiddledum demanded, unsure which of the four he was actually addressing, though it sounded like one of the smarter ones, Lupin or Granger perhaps.

"I was told such at my last school," Granger (James) said and James was glad that he knew at least that much about Harry. "One of my old professors didn't like me too much."

"How unfortunate," Twiddledum said, sure that Granger hadn't drunk his potion, or had drunk his own hair; that was something Gryffindors would do. "Whatever happened?"

"He got suspended…" Hermione (Lily) said as she came up to them. Lily (Hermione) walked forward and smiled at Potter (Harry). "Eventually he was sent to Azkaban."

Hermione (Lily) moved towards Granger (James) and she continued to smile pleasantly.

"What did you tell her?" Harry demanded of Mione; who was standing beside him. 

"_Mostly the truth, but watch Twiddledum." _Mione advised. _"He thinks we drank our own hairs."_

"Be that as it may, Ms Granger, it is not likely to happen."

"Think what you will," Hermione (Lily) said and leaned up against Granger (James). Granger (James) rested an arm around her shoulders and turned back to smile mockingly at Twiddledum, and yet, he was still able to keep his polite iciness.

"Whose hair did you drink?" Twiddledum said, changing the subject.

The teenagers looked at each other and Hermione (Lily) and Lily (Hermione) moved to stand by each other, between Granger (James) and Potter (Harry). The four boys stayed mingled together. Black (Remus) and Potter (Harry) smirked, Potter (Harry) had was twirled his wand between his fingers and Black (Remus) leaned up against the desk. Granger (James) watched Twiddledum carefully while Lupin (Sirius) watched them all with a semi-worried expression.

Twiddledum glanced between the four males and growled silently. There was no way that they had learnt Granger's habits in only a month. It simply wasn't logical.

But then…Twiddledum glared at them before spinning on his heel and heading towards his desk again.

The Gryffindors' laughter built the further away Twiddledum got. Students around them glanced warily. All were too aware of the Marauders reputation to do anything that could even in the slightest way annoy them.

"Alright," Hermione (Lily) said, looking from one boy to another until she had glared at all four. "Just who is who?" She demanded and glanced quickly to make sure Twiddledum was distracted.

The four boys smirked and Lily (Hermione) laughed. She moved to Potter (Harry) and sneered at him. "You almost got it, darlin', but not quite. This one's Harry."

Harry scowled and glared at her. "Yeah," he agreed. "Smart ass is right."

"I am very smart," Lily (Hermione) agrees. "But it has nothing to do with my arse."

The five young adults laughed as Lily crossed her arms. She studied the boys again, her eyes narrowing on them all. "You're Sirius," she decides when she noticed the slightly hysterical note in Lupin's laughter.

"Damn it, how did you do that?" Sirius whined and pouted. Lily just laughed and shook her head.

"Then that means, you Mr. Granger, are James Potter," Hermione grinned as James sighed and sat down.

"How'd you guess?" he demanded to know. "I could be Remus, and he could be Harry."

"You echoed Sirius' whine when he was caught." Hermione grinned and winked at Lily. She raised a hand to her hair and sighed, shaking her head. "It's going to be like this into most of the next class."

"Unfortunately," Hermione admitted. "I kind of like my hair being brown."

"She's finally grown into it," Harry grinned and ducked his sister's playful punch.

Black (Remus) watched them all with amusement and Hermione turned on him. "You weren't just excluded or something. When the Professor mentioned cheating you looked really angry, and really nervous, but only for a second; you blocked it quickly, but not quickly enough."

"You're good, Lils," Remus admitted and the brown-haired girl laughed.

"That I am."

"Shouldn't I be saying that?" Hermione demanded as she pulled her still-red hair into a tight ponytail.

"No," Lily grinned and braided her thick brown curls as she let her eyes trail around the classroom. "But if you want, you can think it."

"Thank you so very much," Hermione rolled her eyes when Harry snorted.

"Wonder how Madam Pomfrey would react to us," Harry smiled as he thought about their strict Healing teacher.

"She'd have us pinned the moment we opened our mouths," Sirius beamed and tossed his potions book into his bag. They would get their grades for their potions the next class, so for the rest of the class, he had nothing to do.

"That's because she sees us too often," James sat down and pulled Lily into his lap. Harry laughed at the image of Hermione in his lap and sat on top of his desk as he gave his sister his seat. Hermione looked as amused as he did.

"Do you have a camera?" She asked Harry and the Boy-Who-Lived raised an eyebrow at her.

"Do you think I'm Colin or something?" Harry shook his head and showed her his empty hands.

"I do," Remus said from beside James. He handed Hermione the camera and the recently redheaded girl smiled happily before snapping a picture.

"Thank you," she said and took another one. "This is just so weird."

"_Wonder how much it would sell for at home?"_ Harry asked her mentally and the girl with the camera grinned cheekily.

"_Depends how desperate the Wiz World is to see your face on every surface available." _

The two grinned at each other, conspiratory looks gleaming in their eyes. If they ever got back home… Harry mentally sighed and shook his head. _If; that was the key word there, _if_ they could get back home._

When the bell rang for class to be over they all walked to the Hospital Wing for Healing. Poppy took one look at them and shook her head in amusement. She knew they had just been in potions and she knew she would have the not-quite pleasure of telling Twiddledum if they passed or not. Though from the looks of things it wouldn't be too hard to guess.

"Alright," she said before she took attendance. "I know most of you just got out of Potions with Polyjuice, so when I call your name I want the _REAL _person to answer, not whoever is wearing said person's skin. Understand?"

"Yes, Madam Pomfrey," The students chorused and Poppy nodded to herself.

OoOoO

Harry fixed his robes again when the bell to end Healing rang. They had all changed back halfway through and Harry had seen the joy in Poppy's eyes when she realized the six of them had passed. None of the other students, mayhap Remus, recognized the look in her eyes but Harry had spent far too much time with her in the past (more appropriately, future) to realize she was proud.

"Finally," Sirius groaned and rubbed his stomach. "I'm hungry."

"You're always hungry," James snickered as he ducked his friend's punch. "And you have terrible aim."

"You're just fast, Jamie," Sirius scowled and stomped towards Harry and Hermione with a scowl.

"Why do you let him get to you?" Hermione asked when they turned a corner.

Sirius laughed quietly. "I don't," he told her. "You don't take Jamie seriously when he's like this." Sirius nodded behind them and Harry noticed his father laughing and teasing Pettigrew. "He doesn't mean anything by it, so you don't let it bother you."

"How do you know when he's not just teasing?" Harry asked aloud and when Sirius smiled at him he felt his blood heat.

"A lot of different ways. You get to know him better and you'll figure it out."

_Counting on it,_ Harry thought as he smiled and nodded.

OoOoO

Minerva watched the Gryffindor seventh years during dinner. It amazed her that the four boys had opened their close-knit group to the two outsiders. But then, it amazed her more that the two seemed completely content in the wrong time.

Of maybe they were just that very good actors? _No_, she thought as she watched Harry Potter laugh at something Black said. There was no way to fake that kind of joy.

The two time travelers had been stuck for a month already and she and Albus hadn't been able to find any way to send them back. _If they actually want to go back_, she thought. Minerva shook her head as the two siblings glanced at each other.

She didn't even know what they had to go home to, and she could clearly see the longing hidden in their eyes. _But longing for what?_ Minerva sighed again and continued to eat her dinner.

"Time travel," she contemplated aloud. "Just what do you know about time travel, Minerva?" When she finished her dinner she stood up, cast a final glance at the laughing Gryffindors and walked softly back to her office, where she once again searched her books for everything on time travel.

"Minerva, why does it bother you so?" the Headmaster's voice asked from the doorway. Minerva turned to face him and gave him a sad smile.

"I don't really know. But there is something about that boy that makes you want to pick him up and squeeze him until he laughs."

"He laughs often," Albus pointed out as he strolled onto the office.

"Yes, but when he isn't laughing, his appearance turns tough, when it is just him and Ms. Granger." Minerva shook her head. "I'm almost not certain it is a good idea to send them home."

"What could possibly be wrong in his life?" Albus shook his head in disbelief. "He is a child, Minerva. They go through stages. He is insecure about being in the past, facing his parents while they are his age."

"Of course, Albus," Minerva said, though she barely believed it. "Good night, Albus," she said as she picked up a pile of essays.

"Good night, Minerva." Albus left and thought back to what she had said. Something was off with Harry Potter. Something that had a lot to do with dark magic.

OoOoO

It was after dinner and Harry and Sirius were alone in the dorm. James and Remus and Peter went off to pull some prank or another and since Sirius did the background work, he didn't have to be on the scene when it was pulled. Though he would still see it because they were recording it as they had taken to doing for the last couple of years.

"What is that?" Sirius asked as he hopped onto Harry's bed. The young man glanced up and smiled.

"Nothing special, just a picture of some of my friends from home." For all apparent reasons, the picture looked like a group of random people had gotten together to take it. No one who didn't know, would see the connection. They wouldn't realize that the adults in the picture were all part of Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix, or that the younger ones, the teenagers and young adults, had been recruited into Harry's own army, which they had renamed Whisper after being caught in fifth year. As Sirius studied the picture Harry was glad that no one was in their school uniforms.

"That's a lot of people," Sirius commented. "They look to be of varying ages."

"They are. I think the youngest is thirteen, which is Dennis. The oldest of the youngest has to be…" Harry thought for a moment about how old Oliver Wood was. "Oliver is twenty-two," he said and glanced at the man wearing the Cannons jersey. He was still completely and thoroughly Quidditch-obsessed.

"And the two redheads practically clinging to you?" Harry glanced back down at the picture to Ginny and Ron, who were, in fact, practically clinging to him. The picture had been taken last year, before…before a lot happened.

"Two of my old friends. The redheads behind me and Hermione are their older brothers, and they're twins."

Sirius grinned insanely at that. "I would love to have a twin. Oh the trouble…" He laughed and winked at Harry. "Though most people say Jamie and I act like twins."

"You do finish each other's sentences," Harry pointed out and couldn't help but smile in response to Sirius' bright grin.

"If you took the time to notice, you and Hermione do as well, even though you try not to."

"We do not!" Harry stared at Sirius, stunned that at what he said. Sure he and Hermione could communicate silently, they had after all had enough practice over the years, but finishing each other's thoughts? No one had mentioned that before.

"Yes you do!" Sirius laughed to himself when he saw Harry rise to the bait. This would be fun.

"Uh-uh!" Harry denied, not sure if he should be worried or not about the laughter in Sirius' eyes.

"Yah-huh!"

"Nooo ogf!" Harry let out a gasp when Sirius tackled him to the bed and started tickling Harry.

"You do, too." Sirius said smugly as Harry tried to deny it between his giggles. When Sirius' fingers stopped Harry kept his eyes on Sirius'.

"Not in this lifetime." He said surely and Sirius raised a dark eyebrow in disbelief.

"You willing to bet on that?" Sirius challenged.

They continued staring at each other while Harry sat up on his elbows to give him some leverage against the Marauder. "What do you have in mind?" He asked, continuing to watch Sirius' gorgeous blue eyes. Sirius's smile was ghostly as he got trapped in Harry. The young hero sat up some more, not caring that Sirius had him still pinned down.

"I think we can think of something," Sirius muttered as his eyes dropped to Harry's lips.

But, unfortunately, this was Harry Potter Sirius was dealing with and of course what he didn't know was nothing in dear Harry's life had ever been easy. Especially the things he wanted. So as Sirius became more and more fascinated with Harry's lips and as Harry's fingers dug in at Sirius' waist, edging him closer, they both heard the stomping of feet and loud laughter, only seconds before their dorm door flung open, admitting the remaining Marauders.

Sirius was off of Harry in a flash, sitting on the bed opposite him and looking at the picture again. The young hero was sitting up, running a shaky hand through his hair and blinking the room into focus. It took several tries before he stopped seeing only Sirius. He glanced up at James in time to see the semi-amused, semi-worried, look on his face. But when James caught Harry's glance he smiled and held out a video camera.

"Today's marvelous prank, courtesy of us, _**the Marauders**_." James laughed and so did Remus and Peter. Sirius only snickered, eyes fixed on the picture and Harry nodded, holding a hand out for the camera.

"You going to let us see, then?" He asked when James looked at his outstretched hand in confusion.

"Yeah, totally. Paddy don't you want to see it?"

"Of course, Jamie," Sirius said and stood up, carefully walking towards Harry and placing the picture between them on the bed. When Sirius took the camera from Harry their fingers brushed and Harry felt his heart speed up.

From the doorway Hermione watched her brother and his godfather with an unconscious frown. Something was off with them and it became obvious when their laughter wasn't as happy as it usually was when it came to the pranks.

"Brilliant," Harry said after the video was done.

"Harry?" Hermione called out finally. The Boy-Who-Lived glanced to her and smiled again. Only Hermione saw the strain in it.

"What is, Mione?"

"Would you walk with me to the library?" She asked and Harry nodded.

"Sure," he replied and stood up. Harry put the picture in his nightstand and picked up his wand on the way out. "What is it Mione?"

"Are you ok, Harry?" Hermione asked quietly as they walked out.

Harry glanced back quickly at Sirius before responding. "I'm ok, why? What's up?"

"You sure?" she asked and Harry nodded again.

The two of them walked down the stairs and through the crowded Gryffindor common room silently. When they left the portrait hole she fidgeted with the two books in her arms. The hardest part about trying to confront Harry was always trying to figure out the right way to start.

"Do you remember when I started dating Terrance?" She asked and glanced at him worriedly. She really probably shouldn't have mentioned him.

"How can I forget?" Harry asked with a glare at the floor at his feet. "I begged you for days to reconsider."

"You stopped, though," Hermione reminded him. "Why was that?"

"Because as much as that jerk rubbed me the wrong way, I wanted you to be happy. I needed to trust you to be able to handle yourself…"

_If I'm ever not around, _the words remained unsaid but there. Hermione watched her best friend with a sad smile on her face. For far too long his death had always been in the front of their minds, along with ways to try and prevent it. Now it wasn't such a threat, but Death Eaters could be unpredictable.

"You still had your problems with him, even after."

"Hermione, he fucking tried to--" Harry cut himself off when he felt his anger rise again. He watched Hermione's face and was so incredibly proud of her when she just nodded.

"Yes, he did, and that is something I know neither of us will ever forget. But you were there. You were the one who refused to just let him onto our team. You kept looking." Hermione hugged her arms around her and shuddered once, memories taking over her mind. "You were what stopped him," she gasped out. "You were the one who took me to the Hospital Wing and you were the one who held me while I cried and ruined your favorite shirt. You dealt with the press and you had him locked away. And you never once demanded any gratitude."

"Hermione, I don't need you to thank me for looking after you. It's not something I would stop doing, even if you found Mr. Perfect." Harry walked towards her and hugged her shoulders while they continued to walk to the library.

"I know you will always look after me, you always have, even when we didn't like each other too much. Even when Ron and I were fighting and pulling at you." She raised her damp eyes to meet his and smiled a watery smile. "So let me take care of you now, Harry."

When Harry glanced away, Hermione giggled and hugged him tightly. "Don't be annoyed with me for doing something that comes so naturally," she continued. "I'm not repaying you or anything; I know I don't need to. I just want to help you." When Harry glanced back at her, he was blushing. "Tell me what is happening between you and Sirius."

"Before they walked in," Harry nodded back the way they had come. "I was going to kiss him. Or he was going to kiss me…I'm really not sure…but we were going to kiss."

"And you have a problem with that?" Hermione asked in confusion. She had personally seen how close Harry and Sirius were, even in the past their bond was undeniable.

"He's my Godfather, Hermione! Of course I have a problem with it."

"Not yet, he's not," she pointed out. "Right now, he's just another male who so obviously has the hots for you. Not that it's hard to see why," she added with a wink.

"What do you mean, obviously?"

Hermione stared at Harry's stunned face and burst out in laughter. "Oh, Harry, honey, he's been eyeing you since our first night here. It got even worse after the morning I woke up in Remus' bed. Have you really not noticed?" When Harry said nothing Hermione continued to laugh. "Oh, man, that is so like you." Hermione sobered up and smiled at him.

"We're twenty years in the past. You're not the Hero here; you're just another teenage male. So if you want to have a relationship, or just wild kinky sex ("HERMIONE!!!") no one would blame you. Right now, this is our only chance at normality. If I had the offer you do, I would totally take him up on it."

"We're lying to them, Mione."

"Yes, but we're trying to tell them the truth for whatever we can." Hermione tugged at Harry's thick hair and made him look at her again. "If it really bothers you that he is going to be, in three years, your Godfather, then don't let it go any further. Stop it before anything can happen. But if there is any chance that that's what you want, then take it and make some good memories, for once."

Hermione smiled at him again. "No one would blame you, not even your Godfather." She went into the library and left Harry thinking in the hallway.

"Well, well, well," a voice sneered from the shadows and Harry tensed.

"Snape," he muttered as the aforementioned male walked out of the shadows with Malfoy beside him. Harry just sighed and shook his head in disgust. "And Malfoy, what do you want?"

"Lying, huh?" Malfoy sneered. "To your new friends. How very Slytherin of you."

"Oh, God," Harry groaned and glared at them. "Again, I ask, what do you want?" _Don't do it Harry, don't do it._ Harry fisted his hands and tensed.

"You and your sister are really close," Malfoy watched him with bored blue eyes. "A little too close, some people would say."

"Then they're idiots if they don't realize she's my best friend."

"Yes, that is interesting." Malfoy sneered. "Yet, you don't seem to realize, Mudblood, that even in our World incest is illegal."

"Well then you'd better make sure you're not caught kissing your brother," Harry growled while mentally berating himself.

"Scum! Filthy Mudblood!" Malfoy snarled and drew his wand. Harry flung out his left hand to the wall at his side and the two Slytherins hit the wall, eyes wide, before falling to the ground.

" Harry hissed and relaxed slightly when their eyes turned white before returning to their original colours.

"Harry!" Hermione hissed from behind him and Harry turned and grabbed her hand, dragging her away.

"Let's get out of here, Filch can find them if he really wants."

"You shouldn't have lost your temper like that."

"I know, but Malfoy and Snape have a history of pissing me off."

The two of them rushed back to the Gryffindor Common Room. Harry dragged Hermione into the shadows with him when Albus Dumbledore walked by rubbing at his hand.

OoOoO

"Siri, is there something you want to tell us?" James asked when Hermione and Harry left their dorm.

"No," the dog answered and James snorted.

"Yeah, right. Tell me, Paddy, what did we almost walk in on?" Sirius glared at James before walking back to his bed and handing the camera to Remus as he went.

"Nothing, Jamie. Lay off it."

"Fine!" James stomped off to the showers. "Inconsiderate Mutt! See if I offer to help you again!"

Sirius watched his best friend go and bit his lip. He glanced at Remus, who gave him a sad look before opening his books to help Peter study. "Talk to him," the Werewolf mouthed and Sirius frowned again.

The Black Family reject eyed the bathroom door again before slinking off to the bathroom. He opened the door and glanced around the public bathrooms, the tiled shower stalls and large sink. He could hear Jamie, barely, and after making sure all the doors to the seventh year boys' bathroom were locked and that they were alone, he sat beside the tiled door where he knew his best friend was.

"It's not because he looks like you," Sirius started after a while. "I mean, completely gross. But Harry is… he's a contradiction. He can be really sweet and gentle around those he likes as well as over-protective and suspicious. You've seen him with Hermione; it's spread to Lily as well."

"You really actually like him, don't you," James asked as he opened the shower door.

"Yes," Sirius admitted.

"Wow," James grinned. "I think this is the first time you haven't just wanted to screw someone's brains out."

"Oh, don't worry; I want to do that, too."

"Oh Merlin, did you have to tell me that?" James shuddered and Sirius laughed. "We really did walk in on something didn't we?"

"I think so," Sirius admitted and looked confused when James stared at him in amazement.

"You _THINK_ so? Wow, the surprises just keep coming, don't they? First Sirius Black is interested in something more then sex, and then he's unsure where he stands with this person he's more interested in."

"Look, Harry is anything but obvious. If it were that easy, I don't think I would be so stuck." _Would have shagged him his second night here. His first was the full moon._ "It might be interesting to try and figure out if he's really serious."

"I'm going to ignore that briefly and inform you that if you need any help in the match-making department, just let me know. I would have fun getting you together. Oh, and Sirius," James said and he grinned when Sirius glanced at him again. "Harry's definitely interested."

Sirius grinned at his friend and the two of them stood up to leave the bathrooms. Sirius glanced at the other doors then at his friend. "Do you think we should unlock the doors?"

Prongs and Padfoot glanced at each other and smirked evilly. "Yeah, right."

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	6. Chapter 6

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Six.**

There was chaos in the 7th year boys' dorms when two of the three dorm rooms were locked out of the bathrooms. It did not take anyone long to realize that the Marauders were at fault. Or at least, that is what everyone thought.

"Really, Frank, I have no idea what you are talking about." James watched Frank Longbottom pace about with an innocent face.

"Bloody that, Potter. What did you do?"

"Frank, really," Sirius cut in. "James didn't do anything. We don't know why you can't get into the bathroom." Sirius' puppy eyes worked on everyone, no one was safe when he turned them on, which is why Frank had to look away.

"Have you tried the _Alohomora_?"

"Yes, we've tried the sodding _Alohom--_" Frank trailed off as Sirius and James both continued to stare at him. Frank cursed under his breath.

"Is there a reason as to why everyone is banging on two bathroom doors?" Harry asked as he came out of the bathroom. He blushed as Sirius' eyes flew to him. Harry was thankful that he had brought his shirt with him, unlike his first morning. Harry dried off his hair with his towel and set about to try and arrange it. Harry knew Sirius was still watching him as he untangled his messy mop.

"Frank, try the A_lohomora_. We have done nothing." Frank huffed as he walked out of the dorm, going to do as Sirius suggested.

Harry saw in the mirror that James and Sirius were staring at each other. It was the way that he and Hermione did when they were silently communicating, before he developed his telepathy, though they still did it often. It was something they were so used to doing that they had never stopped.

"I'm going to take a shower now," James said and walked past Harry. He paused for a second, kept his eyes on Harry's before shaking his head and walking into the bathroom. "Be out in a few and we can go get breakfast."

Harry fidgeted for a moment, turning back to brush his hair. The banging from the bathroom stopped and Harry smiled. "What did you guys do?" he asked Sirius, who smiled.

"We just turned the lock, Harry, that's all."

"You could have opened the door for them, then," Harry suggested and Sirius shook his head.

"Where is the fun in taking the easy way out of things?" Sirius strolled towards Harry and tugged on the young man's raven hair. "Have I told you how amusing it is to watch you fight with your hair?"

"Probably," Harry grumbled, glaring at his reflection.

"You know, you don't have to chew your arm off before asking for help, Harry." Sirius tugged the brush out of Harry's hand and smiled at the teenager. "We'd be more then happy to help you." Sirius laughed at Harry's flaming face but he finished untangling the mass of hair for the young hero.

"I've never been good at doing what's best for me." Harry smiled up at Sirius. "It drove my family crazy."

"I bet it did. Jamie and I drive his parents crazy regularly." Sirius smiled and Harry grinned back.

"If it hadn't been for Mione I probably would have done something unfixable a long time ago." Harry admitted to Sirius as he took the brush back. "Thanks for that. It's a regular pain in the ass." Harry smiled at Sirius as he stood up and picked up his robes. "Can James take any longer?" he demanded of his friend and Sirius laughed.

"You haven't seen him getting ready for a date yet. He can primp longer then any Witch I know."

"Scary," Harry grinned at the teenager and Sirius smirked back.

When their eyes met in a clash of sapphire and emerald heat bounced from one to another. Harry literally felt the sparks of Sirius' Magic as the blue-eyed man kept his eyes locked on Harry's. "So ah…" Harry muttered, wetting his lips and praying someone would come rescue him before he made a fool of himself.

"So ah…" Sirius mimicked, walking closer to the young savoir until their toes were touching. "Something you wanted to say, Harry?" He demanded, whispering the question in Harry's ear.

"Ahh, yeah," Harry got up and raised his hands up and placed them on Sirius' chest. "This isn't a good idea." He pushed Sirius away and bit his lip, trying not to be cowardly and glance away from the confused pretty blue eyes. "It'd be a really, really good idea if things were…but they're not, so this is a really, really, _really_ bad idea and we really should make sure it doesn't happen." Harry fidgeted, chanting _Hermione_ in his head and hoping that she'd come to his rescue.

"What would make this a really good idea?" Sirius asked, tilting his head in confusion. His eyes narrowed as he tried to work out Harry's reasoning. "What would make it right?"

Harry cursed himself as he looked away. It was times like these that he was more Slytherin than Gryffindor, where self-preservation meant more to him then his pride. "It's not a good idea, Sirius, not for either of us." Harry tried to mask his face, as he had so many times before while he was at war, but he knew that it never worked against Sirius in the future, and he knew that past Sirius was just as observant.

"But you want it to be," Sirius guessed, walking towards him. "Otherwise you'd say so. Don't be a coward, Harry, it doesn't suit you." Sirius shook his head as Harry backed up into his desk, Sirius right in front of him. "Why isn't it a good idea?"

Harry opened his mouth to respond but it was too late. Sirius was already there, his mouth on Harry's, his hands gripping the desk on either side of the raven-haired teenager. Sirius' heart pounded in his chest as he cursed his impulsiveness. But at the same time he was thinking of the fact that Harry wasn't putting up any resistance to the sudden personal invasion. Sirius deepened the kiss, still resisting the urge to touch the boy. When Harry finally returned the kiss it was all Sirius could do to not start dancing. Finally, finally, Sirius pulled back, staring at him with an intensity that made the young hero shiver.

"Why isn't it a good idea?" Sirius asked with a shuddering breath.

Harry blinked at the teenager before him and licked his lips, trying to form some kind of thought. It really wasn't working as Harry stared Sirius in the eye. So he looked away and let his thoughts come. "It's a really bad idea, Sirius. You really don't know me, and –"

"Isn't that the point?" Sirius asked. "To get to know someone?"

"You don't want to know me." Harry finished and met Sirius' eyes again.

"How can you know that?" Sirius asked. "Everyone has secrets, Harry, and we all know you do. It's normal."

"Having secrets might be normal, but what those secrets are can make you very abnormal."

Sirius saw the defiance in Harry's emerald eyes and wondered what Harry didn't want to be. He knew the kid had secrets; it was obvious even though Harry tried to hide it. Sirius ran his fingers down Harry's cheek and smiled.

"Who wants to be normal, Harry?" Sirius asked. "Abnormality is what makes life interesting. I could tell you a few interesting things about myself that you wouldn't think possible."

_Doubt it,_ Harry thought. He shook his head, took Sirius' hand from his cheek and squeezed it tightly before letting it go. "I wish this was a good idea, but it's not Sirius, not for either of us. It's a really, really bad idea. I'm sorry." Harry leaned up on his toes and kissed Sirius swiftly before walking past him and picking up his bag on his way out the door.

"_Harry, you're an idiot."_

"_Love you too, Mione."_

"_You're a freaking MORON!"_

"_Good-bye, Hermione."_

Harry glanced at his sister, who was standing on the bottom of the steps. She glared at him and Harry groaned. "Don't, Mione, not now."

"You are a sodding fool, Potter!" She snarled under her breath.

"So you think it's a good idea to string him along?" Harry demanded. "Hermione, he's my Godfather! If he knew that, you know he'd back off, but he can't know that because it will fuck with time."

"You're right there, unfortunately. If he knew, he probably would back off, because then he'd know you're James' and that would make you off-limits." Harry nodded, glad Hermione understood that, at least. "But then," she said. "He might not care." Hermione smiled secretly when Harry blinked at her repeatedly. "But enough of that now, I'll yell at you some more later. We have to get to breakfast now if you want to avoid Sirius all day."

OoOoO

Sirius stared at the door, confused. Had he really just been turned down? By Harry no less. Because it _wasn't a good idea_. Whatever that meant.

Sirius found himself sitting on Harry's bed, still staring at the door as his shock worked itself into confusion, and his confusion, as always, quickly changed to determination.

Harry had said they were a bad idea, but he refused to say why. Sirius was going to find out, and then he was going to make Harry see that he was wrong.

After all, there isn't much you can keep from a Marauder at Hogwarts.

OoOoO

From his spot in the bathroom James stared at the mirror in his hand, his mouth wide open. He had slipped the other one into Harry's pocket, wanting to know what was said between his best friend and the new student; he hadn't been prepared for the conversation between Hermione and Harry.

But it explained a lot.

Harry was his.

Sirius was Harry's Godfather.

Oh, Merlin.

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	7. Chapter 7

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Seven.**

As Hermione knew he would Harry avoided Sirius as much as possible all morning. The two of them had eaten breakfast with Remus before the other Marauders had come down, and they went to the library to wait for the first bell.

They snuck into class before the final bell rang and Hermione stayed with Harry throughout Care of Magical Creatures, which both time travelling Gryffindors agreed that Hagrid was a by far better teacher of than the current one.

Harry had never been more in tune with anyone than he had been with Sirius that morning. He had been so determined to avoid him at any cost that he spent much of his time discreetly watching the oldest Black brother. Creatures seemed to go on forever for three of the black-haired Gryffindors and when the bell finally rang Sirius only got a glimpse of Harry's retreating back and he wanted to rush after the younger man. But he made his way down to Defence with Remus and James at their regular pace.

James' eyes had been locked on Harry all during Creatures. He honestly couldn't believe he hadn't realized it at first. People had asked if they were brothers, or cousins, some scumbag Slytherins, who shall remain nameless (coughtSnapecoughMalfoycough) had even suggested that his father had cheated on his mother with a Muggle and that Harry looked identical to James as a constant reminded of the older Potter's infidelity.

But he knew the truth now, Harry was _his_. Not his father's, or his brother, but _his_ son. James William Potter had a _son!_ He also assumed, if watching the young man interact with Lily was any clue, he also knew who Harry's mother was going to be.

It explained a lot, really, James thought during Defence Against the Dark Arts, not only Harry's looks, but also the quality of his brooms, which _had _to be from the future, and his love for Quidditch. Harry was a very good player and when he had come to the tryouts on his first Friday he had blown everyone away. Harry was a natural on the Pitch, just like every other male in his family was. Why Harry knew the school so well was also covered, because, of course he had to come from sometime in Hogwarts' Future.

Hermione he didn't understand though. James knew they weren't bother and sister, but they acted like it. They were very open with their affection for one another and James would have thought that they were dating if he hadn't seen the reaction to that thought personally. More than one person had thought that of them. After all there had been no blood between them to stop it.

James guessed that when they had realized where they were they had come up with the step-siblings story as a quick and easy cover. It worked because they knew each other well, sometimes he thought they knew each other better then he and Sirius did, but that was bogus.

James and Sirius were brothers the same way Harry and Hermione were brother and sister. _Maybe they dated once upon a time and decided they liked being friends more?_ James wondered, thinking about how they called each other _love _or_ pet_; _sweetie and honey _were on the list of endearments as well.

How had they gotten here?

OoOoO

_How had he gotten here?_ Harry asked whoever was listening, though he knew it wouldn't do any good. The Powers liked to screw with him; other wise he wouldn't be a hormonal teenager stuck twenty years in the past to deal with his too-hot-for-his-own-good Godfather. And said Godfather wouldn't be looking at him as if he were dessert. Harry shivered at the image that popped into his mind and quickly flushed the image out, wondering if there was any way to charm away the part of his brain that liked to take up residence in the gutter.

Out of the corner of his eye Harry saw Sirius scribbling something on his parchment and wondered what was so fascinating that it took his attention away from the Defence Professor. Though, knowing Sirius, he wasn't too sure that he wanted to know.

"_Will you stop staring at him, Harry, you look love-sick.'_

'_WHAT?!?!' _

Harry's head whipped around so fast that he gave himself whiplash. But he didn't notice the pain as he stared at Hermione. "You're seeing things, sister," he whispered to her and Hermione just shrugged, shaking her head.

"Denial's not just a river in Egypt you know."

Hermione cackled under her breath and went back to taking notes. Soon after a parchment appeared on her desk and Hermione grinned at the neat scribble. Writing back a note she shrugged as she sent it, turning around in her seat to stretch her arms, she winked at Remus.

The Werewolf blushed as he watched Hermione turn back in her seat and hiss something to Harry. Picking up the note that he had sent, asking if she had any ideas what was up with their friends.

_Harry and Sirius I can explain, though you can probably come up with your own theories on them. wink-wink James, on the other hand… are you sure he's not just mentally drooling over Lily??_

Remus snickered under his breath. Yeah, he could explain Harry and Sirius, or, he would normally be able to. They had been tossing sparks off of each other since Harry arrived, so this morning's avoidance could mean one of a couple of things. Remus watched Harry glance at Sirius out of the corner of his eye before turning to Hermione.

"I'm just going to go up to the Common Room, alright?" Remus heard Harry whisper to Hermione. The Werewolf saw Hermione give Harry a disapproving look that the young man ignored. "I'm not hungry, alright?"

"Fine, but you had better come to dinner." Hermione and Harry nodded at each other and when the bell rang Harry dashed out of the classroom. The remaining Gryffindors walked down to the Great Hall.

James sat down with his friends and frowned, biting his lip. He glanced back to the Entrance and sighed. "I'm not hungry," he told everyone. "I'm going to go upstairs." He kissed Lily quickly before taking off.

James entered the Common Room and headed silently for the dorm that he shared with his son. He spotted Harry the moment he walked in. The young man was lying on his bed, looking through his photo album.

"Is there a picture of Sirius in there?" he asked, making his presence known. Harry closed the book with a snap and raised an eyebrow at James.

"I don't see why there would be as I just met him." Harry tucked the book under his pillow and sat up. "If you're up here to get me to come down to lunch, I'm really not hungry." Harry sat up and cocked an eyebrow in James' direction. The elder Potter sighed.

"Alright, here's the deal. I know you transferring here is bullshit. I know you're not from Australia and I know that you and Hermione aren't really brother and sister. Well, ok, I really don't know that, but I think that. I do, however, know why you look so much like me."

The amusement on Harry's face vanished immediately and he sprang to his feet, tensing instantly. "I don't know what makes you say that, but you had better be careful which rumors you listen to."

"And if it came directly from the mouth of the horse? So to speak, of course."

"What are you talking about?" Harry asked, his eyes glancing to his pillow, where his photo album hid.

"I overheard you with Hermione this morning." James shook his head. "No, that's not true; I was eavesdropping on you and Sirius. I wanted to make sure things went well, When they didn't I wanted to know why."

"How?" Harry demanded and James pointed to Harry's right pocket. Harry's hand went in and pulled out the mirror. When Harry recognized the object his face went white. "What a clever way of eavesdropping," Harry said darkly, his eyes narrow and his voice snappish.

"It's not as if we don't know you have secrets."

"Did you ever think that maybe keeping my secrets to myself was a good thing?"

"You ever think maybe you need to let off some of that baggage you're carrying?" Harry started laughing, calmly at first but it slowly built to hysteria.

"Do you think you could carry it?" Harry asked cryptically as he settled down. "You can't tell anyone; not Sirius, not Remus, not Lily and for God sakes, not Peter."

James frowned at the bite in Harry's voice but he figured it was from the hysteria because seconds later he started to shake. James watched Harry run a shaking hand through his hair. Harry rubbed at his eyes, scratched the back of his head and James once again was stunned that he hadn't realized just how much alike they really were.

"Harry?" James asked cautiously. He walked towards the young man and sat on the bed, pulling Harry down beside him. "I won't say anything if you don't want me to. But give Siri and Remy a little credit. If I figured it out, then so will they."

"They _can't,_ James," Harry stressed. "That _will_ change time." Harry shuddered as he unwillingly thought of how his life could change.

"I don't think them knowing I will have a son is going to change much, or the knowledge that Lily is your mother." Harry flinched and glanced away. "How bad could it be, anyway?" Harry's head flew up and he stared at James with horror.

"How the hell can you say that? How can you risk everything like that?" Harry stood up and started pacing restlessly back and forth.

"You're a lot like your mother," James mused allowed. James laughed quietly when Harry turned to glare at him.

"If I was more like her, then you wouldn't have found out about me so quickly." Harry stopped pacing and leaned up against the wall.

"No, I probably would have. You've got the hots for my best friend, he's got them for you. I look after those I care about." James said it so simply that Harry had to frown at him again.

"So you wouldn't mind?" Harry would have thought that James would freak out.

"Before? No, it wasn't a problem that Sirius was interested in you, or the other way around. I'm used to him flirting with everyone, and them flirting back." James frowned to himself, almost like he was thinking things through allowed. "Something about you changed that, and it was good to see that he could stay interested in someone longer then it took for him to piss off McGonagall."

"And now?" Harry asked, tired of waiting for the _but_ that he knew was to come.

"I'm not so sure," James admitted. "I mean, I'm glad that Sirius is actually interested in someone. But you're… you're my son. Why does that change things so much?"

Harry shrugged. "I have no idea." He scratched his head. "You know, Albus would probably have a solution."

"Do you really want to bring this to him?" James asked with a knowing smirk. Harry shuddered, shaking his head. James smiled at Harry, before frowning again.

"In the future, where you're from…" James trailed off again after gaining Harry's attention. He had no idea how to ask. "In the future, are you…?"

"When I was home was I interested in Sirius?" Harry asked and James nodded, glancing at Harry out of the corner of his eye. "I don't know." That was honest. He had no idea anymore. "I mean, he's attractive, but you'd have to be dead not to notice. I trusted him - trust him, more then I trust Albus. He's the kind of man you can look up to and not be ashamed that you're not worth his time." Harry slanted James a look to keep him quiet. It was strange really, telling his father about his best friend. "He's brave, and he's still fighting. He's amazing, James, here or there," Harry smiled again. "He is just a little more obvious here," he admitted.

"So you liked him?" James asked and Harry laughed.

"I loved him," Harry's eyes danced at James astonished look. "Just like I love Hermione and Remus. He's family there, so I don't know. Plus," Harry smirked. "He's twenty years older than me."

James' head flew up at Harry's admittance. "Three years, huh?" James glanced down again and rested his chin on one of his knees. He watched Harry as the young man sat down. "You're not going to tell me any more are you?" he asked and Harry shook his head. James pursed his lips. "I don't mind," he finally said. "I don't mind if you, yah know," James shrugged his shoulders. "But don't hurt him, if you can avoid it."

"Why do you think I said _no_ this morning?"

"That was cowardice," James said and laughed when Harry gaped at him. "Not used to being called out are you?"

"Actually," Harry admitted. "I'm not." Harry smirked again. "People usually bow down and kiss my feet."

"I bet," James laughed and soon Harry followed.

"Well, isn't that interesting." Harry and James glanced up at the voice from the door and the Boy-Who-Will-Live held out his hand for his sister. Hermione walked towards them and handed them a stack of sandwiches. "Figured you'd both be hungry." Hermione sat beside Harry and pulled out his photo album.

"How long have you been friends?" James asked and Hermione frowned, concern lighting her face. Hermione and Harry stared at each other and James watched the emotions flicker across her face. Finally she nodded, a knowing grin on her face, and she turned her attention back to James.

"I met Harry on our first train ride to Hogwarts. We didn't like each other at first." Harry and Hermione grinned.

"Hermione was bossy," Harry said.

"Harry was careless," Hermione said.

"Nothing has changed," they both said. James laughed again and glanced at the photo album. Hermione handed the book to Harry and Harry opened it. He flipped through a few pages until he found one of himself and an older man. The brief glance that James got was enough, he knew the man who had an arm around Harry's waist instantly; it was Sirius.

XxXxX

"Do you think they're ok?" Lily asked Remus near the end of lunch.

"I hope so," Remus muttered back. The Werewolf turned his attention from the redhead to his friend.

Sirius had spent all of their lunchtime poking at his food. The young man sighed heavily and leaned his chin on his palm. He stared at his food detachedly and sighed again. "You know, I'm not so hungry. I'm just going to go upstairs."

"We'll come with you," Remus said with a glance to Lily. The redhead nodded and the two of them stood up. Sirius sighed and rolled his head on his shoulders and stood up to follow Lily and Remus. Peter glanced at them and then at his food. He decided to finish eating before going upstairs.

Lily worried her bottom lip as she glanced back at Sirius. "Are you sure you're not hungry Siri?" she asked and Sirius shook his head. He gave the Fat Lady the password and slunk up to the door that led to their dorm.

"Are you kidding?" They head James ask.

"Nope," Hermione's voice snorted. "She refused to believe that Harry wasn't interested."

"She was psycho," Harry whined.

"What did you do about it?" James asked and Hermione and Harry started laughing.

"It was bloody priceless," Hermione giggled. "It was so obvious that Harry wanted Chloe to stop that a friend of ours, well…" Hermione trailed off as she continued to giggle. When her laughter subsided she spoke again. "One day, Chloe wouldn't let go and Seamus strolled over, cocky as hell, slipped his arms around Harry's waist, kissed him and titled his head to Chloe. _'Is there a reason yer still clinging to my Harrykins?'_ he asked. Chloe fled; she never looked at Harry again." Hermione laughed loudly.

"Were you, er…" James' voice trailed off.

"No," Harry said flatly. "Seamus was a good friend of mine, but that's it. _Harrykins_, comes from two other friends, twins. They tease; we tease. We were always really close."

Lily and Remus glanced at each other, then to Sirius. The black haired man was staring at the door, looking hesitant. Sirius stared at the door, worrying his lip. He took a breath and opened the door, strolling in. James, Harry and Hermione were sitting on Harry's bed. Harry's photo album was open on his lap. Harry glanced up, his eyes met Sirius' and he blushed.

"Hey," he muttered with a swift shrug. "Want a sandwich?" he asked them.

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	8. Chapter 8

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Eight.**

It was strange that James knew the truth about them. Harry was usually so _good_ at keeping his life a secret, which would surprise anyone and everyone who read the _Daily Prophet_, but it was true. Harry kept his life secret and everything written down was usually bogus or second-hand and old news. So it was no hardship for him to come here and keep his true nature a secret, even though he had been tempted to tell more than once. Then James had found out, in a purely Marauder kind of way of course.

So, it was strange.

All throughout their afternoon classes Harry had seen the contemplative look on James' face. He had also seen the worried look on Remus' face, the concerned one on Lily's and the flickering of pain that flashed across Sirius' handsome face whenever he was unable to keep his thoughts from showing. It was the last expression that worried Harry the most.

Their last class for the day was ending soon and Harry had his head lying on his arms. Partly because he was tired and partly because he didn't want to chance a glance at Sirius when it was on his face what he was thinking. Harry sighed with relief as their last class finally ended. He needed to get out of there. Needed to run, or fly, or something that was so physically draining that when he was through his brain wouldn't work.

_Flying,_ Harry thought with a dreamy smile. If he was sure that he wouldn't get caught…

Images of flying through the sky with nothing and no one to hold him back came back to him and Harry sighed, knowing that the last time he had done it Sirius had caught him on his way back through his window into Grimmauld Place.

_Oh, that hadn't been fun,_ Harry thought with a grin. His Godfather had been so stunned that he had stared at Harry for ten minutes, gaping.

"Hey, Harry! What are you dreaming about?" James asked as he stepped up beside him. Harry glanced at James, blinking in confusion.

"Oh, uh… just something that happened at home."

"With your Godfather?" James asked, a smirk on his face. Harry scowled at him, his shoulders tensing as he muttered quietly in the affirmative.

Sirius watched Harry's face slowly turn red curiously. Hermione giggled, a smile appearing on her face, while Remus shook his head and Lily joined him. Harry caught Sirius' glance and they both glanced away.

Hermione, who had been watching the two with amusement, tossed her bag at her brother, who caught it expertly. Looking confused Harry frowned at her, tilting his head to the side. "Well," Hermione answered his unspoken question. "I know you are going upstairs anyway, you might as well store my bag, too." Hermione fluttered her eyes and Harry groaned in disgust.

"_The things I do for you, little sister,"_ he thought at her. "Lily, would you like me to take yours as well?" Harry asked and his mother nodded, thanking him as she handed him her book bag.

"What about us?" James asked, mocking Hermione by fluttering his eyes at Harry himself. Harry snorted and shook his head.

"You can take them yourselves." Then he walked away, heading quickly for the Common Room.

James and Remus glanced at each other and then at Harry's retreating back. As one they dumped their bags at Sirius' feet and took off, ignoring Sirius' disapproving snarl.

"WHAT THE HELL?!?" He demanded of his running friends. James glanced back and winked at him.

"Have fun!" he called out, blowing the irate dog a kiss. Sirius glared at them until he lost sight of them before he picked up the two bags and followed in Harry's footsteps. Sirius sighed as he opened the door to their dorm and walked smack dab into Harry, knocking them both over. When the confusion ebbed Sirius was left staring down into Harry's emerald eyes.

"Well, isn't this interesting?" Sirius mused, smirking his face. Harry flushed and shook his head, struggling under the weight of Sirius.

"Let me up," Harry urged and Sirius raised a dark eyebrow at him. His sapphire eyes watched on with interest as Harry's emerald eyes glanced around wildly. "Let me up, damn it, Sirius, let me up. Let me up, let me up." Harry continued to repeat the chant as Sirius stared at him in confusion. He sat up, his brows knit together. Harry struggled once more before pushing Sirius off of him. Sirius watched, concern washing through him as he read the terror in Harry's eyes as the younger man backed up against one of the beds.

"Harry? What is it?" Sirius asked and Harry shook his head, wiping the terror from his eyes and face.

"Nothing, nothing," he repeated and stood up, still leaning against the bed for fear of his legs falling out under him. Sirius stood up, and walked towards Harry. The young man didn't flinch as Sirius cupped his cheek, but they both felt the shudder that went through him.

"Grab your coat," Sirius says, swiping Harry's long hair out of his face. "We're going out."

"I…" Harry bit his lip, and glanced away.

"I won't ask you about it, Harry, but you can tell me." Sirius smiled calmly, while his pulse raced in his ears. "But be quick, otherwise I'll make you pay for dinner."

Harry nodded and darted for his coat before charging after Sirius and out of Gryffindor Tower. Sirius led Harry to the third floor and the young man eagerly followed, working hard to keep the bad memories at bay. "What I am about to show you, Harry, is known only to a select few. You must swear upon our friendship that you will not divulge these secrets." When Harry only laughed at him Sirius swatted his arm and stopped in front of the one-eyed witch. "Well, I figure you can tell your sister, but no other."

"Alright," Harry agreed solemnly and Sirius opened the witch's hump for them. Letting Harry go first, Sirius closed the passage behind them before taking Harry's hand and leading him through the tunnel. After climbing out Sirius winked at Harry and led him into Rosmerta's pub. Harry grinned at the lady who would look the same twenty years later.

"Well, Mister Black, I can't say it's a surprise to see you here," Rosmerta greeted Sirius with a shake of her head and smiled at Harry.

Sirius grinned at her and dragged Harry to a table. "Two butterbeers, Roz, and two of your number sevens." Rosmerta laughed and smiled at Sirius as she wrote down his order.

"Sirius Black, I doubt you order anything else. You be careful around him, Mister Granger," Roz said and Harry blinked at her. He had only meet Roz once in this time, yet… "I'm great with names, young man," she answered his unspoken question before going behind the bar.

Roz quickly returned with their butterbeers. "Have fun, boys," she told them before taking off again.

"Aren't you worried she'll rat you out?" Harry asked as he sipped his warm drink.

"No, Roz would never do that. We've been doing this for years, and neither Dumbledore nor McGonagall has ever said anything about it. They probably know, though."

Harry spent the meal listening to Sirius talk and laughing at the young man's jokes and stories about the Marauders. Harry's laughter once again subsided and he grinned at Sirius. "Don't you think James might not be too happy with you telling me that?"

Sirius snorted and grinned cheekily. "Don't worry about Prongsie Boy, he still gets a kick out of it," Sirius flashed Harry another grin before snagging one of the younger boy's fries.

"Thanks," Harry muttered dryly.

"No problem, doll," Sirius grinned still, as Harry turned a dull red.

Harry finished his hamburger and eyed Sirius suspiciously. The puppy eyes were back and the emerald-eyed Hero sighed. "You remind me of the Hamburgler," Harry mused allowed as he pushed the remainder of his fries to Sirius.

"Hamburgler?" Sirius asked in confusion and Harry had a vision of Sirius and Remus' first ever trip to the King of Muggle fast foods. Harry and Hermione had been restless and got permission from Albus to let them go as long as the two Marauders went with and kept a close eye on them.

"Yeah," Harry trailed off as he thought of his Sirius. His bit his lip in distress and glanced at the young man in front of him. He knew all too well which one was _his_ Sirius. The one who understood his stories about Voldemort. The one who didn't have to question Harry's reactions, because he knew all too well what caused them. The young man sitting in front of him wasn't his Sirius, and Harry's heart ached for the comfort of the older man. For the dark, secreted Sirius who had seen as much as Harry and still had pranks up his sleeves. He missed the Sirius who had fought Hell itself to return to Harry's side. His Sirius would kill for his Godson without batting an eye. Just like he would jump in front of the AK if it meant Harry would live.

Harry banished those thoughts from his head. He knew that even though he had forbidden Sirius from doing something reckless, the older man wouldn't bat an eye at breaking that promise if Harry was in trouble. Of course, Harry wasn't one to talk, as he would do the same for Siri (and Mione and Remy). Damn the consequences. That was his Sirius, the dark, sometimes scary man who had survived Azkaban for him. But then, Harry thought, looking at the young man before him, maybe this young, innocent Sirius could be his as well. Maybe the one who smiled easily, laughed even quicker, the one who hadn't seen the insides of Hell personally, would be willing to take on the burden that was Harry.

He might be strong enough to --

"Where did your thoughts take you, cutie?" Sirius asked, dangling a fry in Harry's face. Harry snatched the fry from Sirius and ate it himself.

"Nowhere special," he denied. "Just my family." Ok, so, a lie that wasn't really a lie… probably not the best place to start this huh?

"Your family," Sirius echoed. "They're special to you, huh?" Harry nodded, his mind forming the mental picture of Hermione, Remus and Siri (both of them) and James and Lily. Albus was thrown in there, with Minerva and Poppy, along with the few others that made up Harry's eccentric family.

_Does your family know …_ "Sorry," Sirius muttered and Harry knew he had been thinking about his little (or not so little) freak out.

"Let's go for a walk," Harry suggested and waited while Sirius flirted with Roz and paid for their meals.

Sirius met up with him at the door to the pub and the two young Wizards walked through the (surprisingly) empty streets of Hogsmeade. "In the beginning of my Sixth Year I was kidnapped." Harry dared a glance at Sirius. All he saw on the man's face was concern. "I didn't know it till later, but one of my best friends, I considered him a brother, wanted to up his ranks in the Death Eaters." Harry shuddered again, the betrayal had the memories taking over and he wasn't even aware that he continued to talk.

"_What the hell?" Harry groaned, struggling to move his hands. They were locked above his head and tugging proved fruitless. Harry opened his eyes and wished instantly that he hadn't. He was hanging from a wall, hands chained above his head and legs locked to the wall. _

"_Kinky bastard," Harry grumbled defiantly. He began shifting about, wondering if there was any way out of his chains. Opening his eyes again, Harry stared at the Death Eaters around him. "It's fruitless to believe that any of you are going to get me out of here, isn't it?" Harry asked and received an evil, echoing, laugh in return. _

"_Oh good, you're awake, young Harry." The young man in question turned his head and glared._

"_What do you want?" Harry snarled and Voldie chuckled._

"_Oh, this and that, the world at my feet, the Boy-Who-Lived kissing my robes." Reflex had Harry turning his head and spitting at the man – monster's – feet. The Black Bitch screeched obnoxiously and Harry ignored her like he did the sudden pain in his cheek. _

_The first slap was tempered in anger, but the second was lazy, telling the Death Eaters he had better, more important things to accomplish. Which really, he didn't, because Voldemort had a one-track mind when it concerned, well, everything. If he deemed Harry the item of business for the moment, nothing short of an Apocalypse was going to detour him. _

"_This is going to be fun, boy, and don't you dare look at me with that look in your eyes."_

"_You and your little dog," Harry snorted._

_Voldemort however did not rise to the bait. Instead he looked back at Harry, an evil gleam in his eyes. "Yes, your little dog." Harry felt his already tense body freeze as the Dark Lord grinned over him. "Very interesting, that no matter how much he loved your father, he still killed the man, and his wife. Oh, your poor mother." _

"_Stop," Harry repeated harshly. He glared darkly, the look on his face matching one that had been thrown at him over the years by his Potions Master. "There is a difference in being the reason someone is dead and killing them. Everyone knows the cowardly bastard that killed my parents was you."_

_There was no slap this time, no menacing glare. Simply the words, "You are going to regret that, boy." Before Harry blacked out._

_When he came to again he was no longer chained to the wall; this time he was chained to a bed, it appeared. Oh, hell. Oh, hell. He felt like shit, his body burned, and what the __**fuck**__ was touching him??? Groaning lightly Harry opened his eyes and blinked. Great, he was in a new room, and the bed would almost be comfortable if he wasn't chained down. And the dozen or two people watching him? So not helping._

"_Oh, good, the brat's awake." The lazy drawl of a voice had the hair on Harry's neck standing up on edge. Harry focused his eyes on the blond man who had spoken, Dumbass prick, he thought with obvious disgust. _

"_Oh, yes, the little boy can't get out," the cooing female voice broke the Harry-icicle as effectively as a sledgehammer. _

"_Bitch," the forbidden word ripped from Harry's lips and he knew without a doubt that it applied to her like no other. The black-haired Witch from the other room cackled expertly and Harry forced himself to quickly gain back some of his over-eager courage. _

"_You do realize you sound like some Muggle horror movie reject, right? The witch laugh? So last decade." Harry grinned an innocent smile. "Oh, ouch," he said dryly. "You know how lame that is, right?"_

"_Your insolence, boy, will be amusing to watch break." It was the drawling blond man and Harry raised his eyes with a reckless smirk. _

"_Like you tried to do to your son?" Harry sneered, imagining his new … friend? At the hands of his father. Before Harry even had the chance to close his mouth his body was wracked with pain. A scream threatened to break free. His body quaked under the onslaught of the torture curse, for what else could cause such pain? Harry bit down on his lip so hard that he drew blood. _

_When the pain stopped Harry opened his eyes to see a blonde woman standing beside the man. Her wand was drawn and pointed at Harry. "My son's betrayal had nothing to do with his father or our Lord. His traitorous actions are entirely due to your delusional behavior._

"_Whatever helps you sleep at night, lady," Harry grinned and spat the blood in his mouth out in her direction. His friend's mother slapped him, much as her sister had. Harry's eyes lingered in the direction of the blonde lady before they followed his head back to the black-haired sister. Then his eyes drifted past her to the figure that cowered in the corner of the room, watching him intently. Harry jolted up as fat as the chains could let him, which was barely a mili-inch. "RAT!" he shouted as he tried to escape. _

_The Death Eaters moved then, all holding him down as the Rat advanced to stand at the foot of the bed. "I could do anything to you I liked, as long as I left you alive." The Rat spoke softly, his evil matching only his Master's._

"_No," Harry whispered. The Death Eaters all had their wands out. "No," he said louder. Harry finally recognized the man standing at his head on his right side. "NO!" he screamed, and lost conciseness again._

Harry blinked back the memory as he stared at Sirius. "When I woke up I was back at the hospital in my school. My Godfather was there and so was the man who had been standing at my side. Though he was hiding in the doorway.

"'Brat,' he'd said. 'You really need to get a clue!'

"'Back off,' my Godfather said and the man snorted. He glared at me before leaving. Then Hermione ran through the door and I couldn't talk to anyone between my sister's rambling."

Harry sighed, and the memory that was whirling around in his mind let the 'could-have-beens' stick. "So, lame right? But I just can't stand--" Harry stopped, his eyes widened as he realized the arms around him weren't Hermione's.

"Ahh…" Harry muttered, turning in Sirius's arms to look at the man.

"There's no reason to be ashamed or embarrassed. Sometimes the weirdest shit can have a life-changing impact on you." Sirius leaned down, his lips brushing over Harry's. Once. Twice. Three times. Before he pulled away and let Harry go.

Flustered and on unknown ground Harry glanced around, and his eyes widened. Grabbing Sirius' hand he started pulling the man back towards town. "Come on, we're further than I thought." A quick glance at his watch proved that they had been out longer than he'd hoped as well.

Sirius let himself be pulled back to the candy shop and through the passage to the school. And he thought, maybe this was the start he'd been looking for after all. As they climbed out of the One-Eyed Witch, Sirius turned and grinned at Harry. "Well, for a first date, I gotta say, it wasn't so bad."

"WHAAAAATTT???"

OoOoO

"It's late, Hermione, maybe you should try to get some sleep?" Remus offered softly, watching the brunette pace in front of the fire. She had been doing so since they had returned from dinner to find no Sirius or Harry in the Common Room. Lily and James had already given up on trying to coax her to bed, but Remus, under the disguise of homework, had offered to keep an eye on her. Not that it was any hardship, though.

"I can't sleep." Hermione sighed, and smiled at Remus. "I'm sorry, I know you're only still up to keep me from going insane."

"It's no problem, pretty girl." Hermione and Remus stared at each other, a red blush flushing over them both. "Ah, ah, I mean…umm…"

But Hermione giggled, flashing him a smile. "It's no problem, Remus. Thank you. With Harry around I don't hear it nearly often enough."

"You should. I don't know why everyone where you're from fears your brother so much, but you deserve to hear it." Remus started rambling, his face flushed. And Hermione only smiled. She walked over to where he sat and the whirlwind that was her brother and Sirius stopped her forward momentum.

"GOD DAMN IT, SIRIUS, GET BACK HERE, YOU GIT!"

A laugh escaped Hermione when she heard their dorm room door slam shut. A smile settled on her face and she grinned back at the startled Remus. "Thank you," she told him, and leaned over to kiss him softly. "Now I can sleep."

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	9. Chapter 9

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Nine.**

When she woke up the next morning, her face was flushed, her eyes wide. _Oh, shit,_ she thought. Racing to get ready she tripped over her school bag and clutched at her bedpost. _Breathe, Hermione, think._ She told herself, and tried to calm down enough to think rationally.

Maybe he wouldn't think anything of it. Maybe he'd think she was just thankful for the company and the compliment. Oh, God, oh, Merlin. Hell. What had she been thinking?

Hermione swore, violently, and tried to shove the thoughts from her mind. She'd ignore it, that's all she could do. _God! That was Remus Lupin she had kissed!_

She'd ignore it and pray that he didn't bring it up. She knew from past conversations (or future…) that Remus hadn't dated a lot while he was at Hogwarts, so hopefully, he'd just ignore it himself. _Oh, hell!_

"_HAARRRRRRRRRRRRYYYYYY!!!"_

OoOoO

The scream jolted Harry from sleep, from the nightmare he hadn't had in months. It took him a minute to realize that he had reached for Hermione in his sleep and that was how he had heard her mental scream. Scanning her thoughts to discover what had her so scared, he started laughing.

Trying to keep his amusement hidden, in case he woke his dorm mates, Harry, clothes in his arms, raced for the bathrooms and closed the door behind him. "You're in trouble now, sis," Harry taunted.

"_You're not helping, Harry,"_ Hermione snapped at him.

"_Ok, ok, explain this to me. You were pacing around last night; going crazy because I wasn't back yet. So after I raced through the Common Room, trying to kill Sirius, you kissed Remus… then ran away like a coward… did I get it all?"_

"_I did not_ 'run away,'_ you prat. I strolled away with a very elegant air of self-confidence."_

"_You should really stop reading that dictionary in your spare time."_

"_Oh, shut up and help me out. I need to avoid him for the rest of eternity." _The desperation in Hermione's voice had Harry pausing in the act of washing his hair.

"_Hermione, you know that's not really possible, right? I mean, not only with the time difference, but I want - _need _- to get to know them and hiding out with you…I don't think that will have the desired effect."_

"_Plus, you want to make time with Sirius."_ Hermione laughed to herself from the female bathroom. She could almost _see_ Harry go bright red. They both knew though, that if Hermione absolutely insisted, he'd pack his things and leave without saying goodbye.

"_Shut up before I murder you." _But Hermione only continued to laugh. _"I mean it darling. I know every way there is to kill a person. Wizard and Muggle."_

"_Yeah, yeah, yeah, stop bragging, you prat. Now, tell me, how was your date last night?"_

"_It wasn't a date, Mione." _

Harry rinsed his hair and climbed out of the shower. After drying off he pulled on his school clothes and went to stand in front of the mirror; his hair was next. He listened to Hermione babble on about what constitutes as a date and smiled to himself at her energy.

"_Plus, you kissed him, so that totally makes it a date."_

"_I should hurt you. Slowly. Painfully."_

"_But you won't, because you love me."_ Hermione French-braided twin braids into her hair.

"Please, remind me why again?" Harry asked aloud and knew that Mione heard him. They could pass thoughts back and forth; it was an ability of Harry's that he had trained Hermione to tap into, but they couldn't see each other, or what the other was doing. That was something else entirely that Harry didn't play with too much.

It was too damned close to what he had with Voldemort.

"_Yeah, whatever. Now, have you decided what to do about Sirius? Because I need you to help me with Remus."_

"_Mione, you know Remus didn't date often at Hogwarts. You're going to have to talk to him. Don't let this get out of control."_

"_You promise to be my escape if it gets too weird?" _Harry smiled to himself. How very _teenager_ of them; it was good to hear it. To know that Hermione could still think like any other teenager out there.

"_Of course, love, you know I will be."_

"_Good; and you never answered my question about Sirius. What are you going to do about him?"_

"Enjoy him. It might be worth it, right?" Harry finished combing his hair and ran his fingers through the raven locks.

"_Love you, Harry,"_ Hermione spoke.

"_Love you, too, Hermione." _With the connection broken Harry shook his head to dry off any excess water. When he looked back up his breath caught in his lungs. For there was Sirius, bathed in sunlight from the dorm windows as he stood in the doorway to the bathroom. The smile on his face was soft, amused and before Harry knew what he was doing he strolled to Sirius. Wrapping his arms around the man, Harry pulled him closer and kissed him securely. Taking a step back, Harry smiled.

"There's a lot I don't know about you," Sirius whispered as he kissed Harry again.

"There's a lot no one knows about me," Harry admitted with the smile still in place.

"I'm going to enjoy finding out," Sirius informed Harry. And for the life of him, Harry couldn't figure out why it felt like a warning.

"I'll bet you will," Harry replied casually and strolled out of the bathroom, his belongings floating behind him.

Watching him go, Sirius frowned and didn't let himself contemplate Harry Granger any longer. He needed to get ready for school and Harry was a really distracting topic.

OoOoO

Sirius strolled out of the bathroom after getting ready for class. Dumping his clothing on his bed Sirius took in his still-sleeping roommates. "Well, ain't this interesting, lads?" He whispered and dove between James' closed bed curtains. Tackling his sleeping best friend, the blue-eyed young man jumped awake.

"Merlin's beard, Padfoot! Bloody hell, mutt. What's your deal?" He shouted and shoved Sirius off his bed. Of course, Sirius dragged James down with him and the two of them ended up with their heads sticking out of James' curtains and their feet still on the bed.

The commotion awoke Remus and Peter and the two Marauders burst out laughing at their friends. Harry heard another voice join the laughter and turned his head. Red lightly stained his cheeks as he spotted Harry leaning up against the bed post. James now joined in the laughter, lying half on Sirius.

"You need to find someone else to molest, mate."

"You've never complained before," Sirius snarked back.

"I'm a taken man now. I can't be caught in a questionable situation." James stretched, not caring that he was still lying on Sirius. "And your boy there, he's not looking so amused anymore."

Sirius glanced up at Harry in time to see the normal, nonchalant mask replace something darker. Winking at Harry, Sirius turned his attention back to James. "That would be your fault now, wouldn't it?" Sirius pushed James away and stood up. James, still on the ground, put his hands behind his head and closed his eyes.

"Boy, we have to get to class," Sirius growled and Peter jumped up with a squeak and hurried into the bathroom.

James opened an eye and stared at Harry with a semi-accusatory glare. "You're a bad influence on him, son."

When Harry tensed, his eyes flying to the others, James sighed, shaking his head mockingly. "You've got my boy there following the rules."

Here Harry snorted. "You're kidding, right? He'll be forty years old and still terrorizing people and breaking the rules."

Remus snickered, eyes laughing. James, however was staring at Harry. A small, secret smile on his face as he studied Harry, then Sirius. "Yes, I do believe you're right about that."

"Hey, now! That's not cool!" Sirius whined.

"It's true, you will never change." James taunted.

"Harry," Sirius dashed behind the man. "He's insulting me. Go take care of him for me, baby!"

Harry turned around, one of Sirius' arms still around his waist. "It's insulting, Siri, that you think I'm stupid enough to take on a Marauder in his own territory."

At Sirius' flabbergasted look Harry laughed softly. He winked at the man and turned his head to the others. "Mione and Lils are waiting downstairs. They want to go to breakfast."

Harry snickered as Remus jogged into the bathroom. James watched the werewolf leave and cocked an expectant eyebrow at Harry.

"What is going on there?" He inquired as he moved into a sitting position. Watching his eyes light with mischief Harry shook his head.

"Don't you think they should be able to figure that out themselves, first?"

"Of course not!" James stretched his legs out in front of him and grinned. "Where's the fun in that?"

"James, stay out of this."

"All for one, Harry. If Remus is going though something, we all get in on it. It's the Marauder Way."

"Not this time. Seriously, just leave this, and them, alone. Don't screw around with it!"

"But I want in on it."

The two Potters stared at each other, their gazes completely locked. Harry's exasperated emerald eyes met James' intrigued and insistent sapphire gaze

"James, really, it's not…"

"Harry, I _want_ to know!"

"I really don't think-"

"I _want_ to know what's going on!" James whined, growled and snapped. Harry glared back, defiance bristling.

"James William Potter!" Harry barked, glaring at his father. "Not everything is your business! You need to learn to keep your nose out of it." The arm around Harry's waist tightened; a silent plea for the young man to shut up.

"Am I supposed to see it that way?" James snarled back. "When _things_ don't add up?" The pointed look set Harry's jaw and the younger Potter pulled himself away from Sirius.

Sirius watched them snarl at each other, identical glares on near-identical faces. "Jamie, don't…" he whispered. He alone knew how violent James' temper could truly get. Remus, Peter, and even Snape had never been face-to-face with the full storm, and Sirius wasn't so sure he'd be able to calm his best friend this time.

"Mates, chill out," Sirius interrupted and received two dark menacing glares.

"STAY OUT OF IT!" James and Harry shouted.

Harry caught Sirius' eye and held it. While Sirius stared at him he could almost hear Harry's voice whispering in the back of his head. Telling him to leave… Confusion sparked through Sirius as he realized he was walking back to the bathrooms. "Don't hurt him," he found himself whispering to James. Though he had no doubt that Harry heard.

Confusion and suspicion lay side by side in James' eyes as he watched Sirius leave. When it was just the two Potters left in the dorm they returned to staring at each other. Harry muttered the silencing spell under his breath and raised his eyes taunting to James'. "Let's have at it then. They can't hear us."

"What did you do?" James asked, bewildered and confused as he looked back to the bathroom door.

"Changing the subject, are you James? How un-Gryffindor of you."

"How can you ask me to stay out of it, when one of my best friends could end up hurt because of it?"

"Because it's important enough that I'm willing to let my sister flounder. If they screw up, James, they screw up. But at least then we can't blame ourselves for leading them into it. If we don't get too involved in setting them up then there is no way that we can change the order of things."

"But… but Remus might end up hurt…" James whispered and Harry narrowed his eyes.

"You weren't this nervous when Sirius professed his interest in me. What's so wrong about Remus dating?"

James rolled his shoulders and sighed. "Sirius, he's good at the dating thing. If he gets hurt, he's capable of hiding it from everyone except those that care about him. Remus on the other hand, he's not so comfortable with the dating thing. Partly because he's a werewolf and he doesn't want to scare the hell out of some girl. He's never been interested, seriously, in a girl. I think there's the possibility that he could get serious with Hermione." James let out a breath and sat on his bed while Harry sat on Sirius. "I don't want to see either of my friends hurt because of this. I think there's a strong possibility that it could happen."

"I can't promise it won't, James. Life's uncertain like that. I can't promise that Hermione and Remus won't break each other's hearts, any more then I can that Sirius and I will come out of this smelling like peaches. But if it is given the chance to grow to all it can be, then how can someone say it wasn't worth it?"

"How are you my son, and yet so wise?" James cracked a grin and Harry laughed.

"That would be my mother's genes coming through. Though I have discovered that you are the reason I'm so over-protective of what's mine."

"You can take the spell off now," James murmured. "I'm not going to flip. … Though I can't say I'm not going to harass Remus to hell and back about his little crush."

"Oh, Hell, no, James!" Remus voice broke through and James widened his eyes at Harry, who only winked. "Stay out of it, mate, don't you dare."

Remus, Sirius and Peter stood in the doorway between the bedroom and the bathroom. James blinked at them, then at Harry and shook his head. "I don't want to know."

"Good answer," Harry smiled. "Ready, then?"

The dorm mates all headed out of the dorm. In the Common Room Lily found Hermione pacing and pulled her into a seat. "You'll wear yourself out before the day even begins."

"I know, I know. Everyone always tells me to calm down, but I can't help it. Not only are the holidays coming, but after that is Exams. Harry needs to be ready for those. He can't risk failing those. They are too important…"

"Hermione, I swear to God, if you are talking about Exams I will Axe-murder you." Hermione and Lily turned to the voice and smiled. The five males were all dressed in their school clothing and looked ready for the day to begin.

"'Bout time you showed up," Hermione said, and the look she gave Harry caused him to wince in apology.

OoOoO

Walking into the Great Hall with his head held high and school uniform bearing the Slytherin snake, Connor Terrance McNeill flashed a smile at the hooting Slytherins. Little had changed in his appearance since he had been gone. Sure, his dark brown hair was lighter, and his gray eyes held a distinct impression of amusement, but all in all he still looked very much like the young man who had left Hogwarts due to a family emergency.

Now he was back. And Merlin, was that a blessing.

Strolling to the Slytherins, he snagged a seat beside Malfoy and flashed Narcissa a grin. "How's it going, mates?"

"Been better… there's new Gryffindors. Annoying as shit, you ask me." Lucius Malfoy flashed his ice blue eyes in the direction of the Gryffindor table and sneered.

"And Quidditch?" He asked them. This time LeStrange answered, his dark eyes narrowed in an angry glare.

"_They_ won their match against Ravenclaw, we won against Hufflepuff. Ravenclaw is playing Hufflepuff next weekend."

"Of course, there's no point in us going to that game, we do know who's going to win." Severus Snape walked up, and McNeill cocked an eyebrow at him.

"I suppose you're right. Unfortunately. It really won't be worth seeing."

"Naturally… McNeill, you're back."

"You sound disappointed, Snape."

"Merely stating an observation." The two stared at each other, and McNeill continued to grin. The whispers around the Great Hall grew in intensity and McNeill turned to spy the Gryffindors strolling into the Great Hall.

"I take it Potter finally convinced Evans to go out with him?" McNeill asked, remembering the last time he had seen the two and how Evans had been at Potter's throat for one thing or another.

"It's disgusting," Narcissa growled, glaring at the group.

"What's worse is our cousin's behavior," Bellatrix growled, glaring at her cousin as her sister snorted her agreement.

"Too true… he's like a lovesick puppy. Ready to bow down and offer his life."

"Really? He doesn't seem like the kind willing to do that…" His speech faded as he took in the two new Gryffindors. The brunette female he could barely make out, but the other male looked like a Potter… No, McNeill thought as the face became clear. He didn't look like a Potter. He was a Potter. He was Harry Potter.

_Oh God… How?_

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

Lady Starlight :D 


	10. Chapter 10

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Ten.**

Laughing, Harry ducked around James and snagged the seat beside Hermione and some random third year. Sirius pouted and slouched into a seat between James and Remus. "I cannot believe you'd think that," he whined and Harry laughed.

"What I can't believe is that you are trying to deny it." Harry grinned happily at the young man. Conversation stilled as they started eating and it wasn't until Lily groaned that Harry felt the eyes drilling into his back. Turning in his seat he heard James ask Lily what was wrong. He didn't hear her answer however because sitting at the Slytherin table was one person he never wanted to see again.

As their eyes meet across the Great Hall chills ran up Harry's spine and he knew without a doubt that he was staring at Terrance O'Conner. The young man in question sat at the Slytherin table; smirk on his face, and hatred in his eyes, along with something else that disappeared the moment Harry caught his gaze. Harry's hand slipped on his drink but he couldn't look away until Sirius filled his vision, blocking the Slytherin.

"You don't look so good, Harry, what happened?" Concern filled his vibrant blue eyes and Harry had to blink a few times to bring everything into focus.

"Nothing, absolutely nothing…" Harry picked up his fork and tried to join the chatter, but his eyes drifted back to the Slytherin table. "You know, I think I forgot something in the dorm." Harry stood up and Remus cocked an eyebrow at him.

"Oh, really? And what would that be?" He asked with more amusement then suspicion.

"I'm not sure, yet… I'm going to go find out." Harry left the table and headed for the doors. Hermione frowned. Grabbing her bag she moved to stand up and go after him. Lily's hand on her arm stopped her. "What is it?"

"Nothing," the redhead said. "I just think the boys should go and talk to him." Hermione opened her mouth to argue when she glanced at Sirius and James, both of whom were smiling. "You always get to console or interrogate Harry… and you're probably the only person to have ever done it. But sometimes, just to shake things up, you should let other people. You might get a different reaction."

Hermione smiled, shaking her head. "Fine… I'm just not used to handing over Harry. We've been together for so long that…"

"Don't worry," James smiled charmingly. "We're not going to break him."

"So you say," Remus muttered. "I better come along to make sure you keep your word."

"Uh, mates? We'd better go," Sirius muttered darkly, his eyes trailing the figure leaving the Great Hall.

James and Remus turned and swore. Harry had already left, but the second Wizard leaving left a bad taste in their mouths. He looked around and winked, blowing them a kiss before leaving the Hall.

James, Sirius and Remus jumped out of their seats, grabbed at their bags and raced off. Hermione was left rooted to her seat. Her face was unnaturally pale and her skin glistening with sweat. How was it possible, after all these months, that he still struck fear into her?

"Oh, God," she moaned and buried her head.

Peter glanced at her, uninterested, and frowned at her lack of color. "Hermione?" he asked, and when she raised her eyes the pain was so clear and loud that he had to take a step back. Squeaking softly he shifted back to her side and frowned. "Hermione, are you all right? You look really pale…" Peter glanced to Lily and saw that she was glancing between Lily and the doorway.

"What did he do to you?" Lily asked, her voice soft. Hermione's head flew up and she stared at Lily before jumping out of her seat.

"I'm… I'm… I'm going to go to class. There's really no reason to be sitting here." Hermione fled, leaving Peter and Lily staring after her.

"Pete?" Lily said, still staring after the girl.

"Yeah?"

"Don't say anything." Lily turned her emerald eyes on him and Peter felt his insides squeeze together. She had Harry's eyes, and Peter could barely stand staring into his eyes.

"Of course not." Though he couldn't help wondering what exactly he was missing.

OoOoO

Harry spun himself out of the school, seeking some form of privacy for the confrontation he knew to be coming. Dropping his bag down by a big willow tree he turned to face Terrance.

"Somehow," The Boy-Who-Lived said, "I didn't expect to see you here."

"Why?" Terrance asked. "I'm the one that belongs here. You're the trespasser."

"Is that so? You failed to mention that before." The two young men stared at each other.

"I'm mentioning it now. Connor Terrance McNeill, not so pleased to meet you." Terrance tilted his head, studying Harry with a cocky smirk on his face and curiosity burning in his gaze. "How did you get here?" he finally asked.

"I could ask you the same thing," Harry commented. He continued to watch Terrance, and neither young man gave away any hints that he didn't want to give.

Bored with the staring contest Terrance finally spoke again. "Oh, but you see, _I_ know how I got here, and there," he grinned. "But I'd love to know how you and pretty little Mione ended up in this wonderful year." Terrance cast a baffled look at Harry and his look turned into a smirk at Harry's clenched fist. "She's certainly grown up in the last few months, hasn't she?"

Harry bit back a groan knowing that Terrance wanted to provoke him. Instead he remained silent and opened his mind. Keeping his eyes open he visualized Terrance and let the Slytherin fill the white space of his mind. This was a hell of a lot more dangerous than conversing with Hermione. Not only was he risking destroying Terrance's mind, but if Voldemort was visiting Terrance when Harry entered the Death Eater's mind, then the Dark Lord would sense Harry's presence as well. Terrance stopped speaking, raising his head to glare into Harry's emerald eyes.

"If that didn't work before, what makes you think it will work now, you cocky little shit?"

Which was true. For some reason that neither Harry nor Dumbledore could explain, Harry had never been able to enter the Slytherin's mind. Which was strange considering Harry could almost force his way into Dumbledore's thoughts. Anyone else was a piece of cake. Except Terrance.

"Figured it was worth a shot," Harry grinned wickedly. "It's a lot more fun then pouring truth serum down your throat."

"And yet, you've never been able to do that either." Terrance smiled as he stared at Harry, taunting. "You look good Har, for someone who doesn't actually exist yet."

"You look remarkable for someone who spent the last eight months in Azkaban."

As Terrance laughed, Remus, James and Sirius ran to a stop, barely three feet away. And they stared at Harry and Terrance in disbelief.

"You don't know? You honest to Merlin, don't know?" Harry's blood chilled at the delight in Terrance's eyes.

'_Don't ask Harry, don't do it, don't give him that kind of power…'_ However his mouth betrayed him as the question was out of his mouth before he could stop it. "What happened?"

Terrance laughed again, disbelief and amusement written on his face. "Your world's in chaos, Harry. They don't know what to do with themselves. Everyone has spent the last three months searching for you. They're entirely too devoted to finding you. And Hermione, if they can pull it off."

"That doesn't explain how you got out of Azkaban," Harry growled. Thoughts of home, of Sirius and Remus and the Order flooded his mind.

"Harry, the Order, and your own Whisper, haven't been focusing on anything else since you vanished. The Aurors have been searching night and day. So little things like guarding the Death Eaters in Azkaban get pushed down on the list of priorities."

"_There is no one guarding Azkaban?"_

Harry's voice echoed over the empty lawn and Hermione, who was running up, froze in motion. "No," she whispered before running again. She pushed past Sirius, James and Remus; only sparing them a glance. "The Death Eaters haven't escaped, have they?" She asked as she stepped between the two Wizards.

Terrance grinned at her, his eyes roaming obviously and he smirked. Hermione tugged her skirt down, trying to cover more skin. Harry snagged her arm and pulled her behind him. "Answer the fucking question, Terrance."

Terrance started laughing, giggling wildly. "No, no, it's all good. All the Eaters are still in Azkaban. I snuck out during one of the guard shift changes. Knocked Shacks and Dora out, but you don't need to worry, there're fine. Lucky I'm not interested in them, huh? My only interest is, well…" The lecherous grin spread over his face as he watched Hermione, who was still standing behind Harry.

"Terrance," Harry growled; his voice hard as stone. "Run." But Terrance grinned again.

"No problem, I'll just run along then. Need to talk to the boss, after all. I'm sure he'll be curious as to what I discovered. And I know he'll love to hear all about the "Boy-Who-Lived" and his pretty sideki-" Terrance bit off his sentence with a sharp yelp.

He looked down at the burning on his left arm and the vise-like fingers that squeezed around his wrist. Breath escaped in a gasp, pain filtered across his face. And hatred. Hatred burned there as he raised his head and stared once again into Harry's emerald eyes.

"You son of a-" he gasps out as the pain spreads from his arm to his stomach and down. Burning his insides and bringing him to his knees. He wrenched his arm free as the pain blinded him.

"Don't you dare mention Hermione to him. If you know what's good for you Terrance, you won't have seen anything useful where I come from."

"Or what? Remember Harry, I actually know you. Unlike everyone here."

"Then you should know I'm not above my own personal brand of torture. If I get word that you've said anything, and I mean _anything,_ you can rest assured that I will be chanting Death Eater in all the right ears. I might not be from around here, I might not have the same power here, but even I know the chain of command."

Terrance stood up, and walked back to the school. In the clichéd way of life, he turned back to glare at Harry. "You're not getting home, Potter," before disappearing into the school.

"Hell," Harry groaned. "Fuck…" turning around he saw the Marauders for the first time and swore darkly and profusely. Some of his curses even the three Marauders wouldn't have thought of.

James looked at him hopelessly, shrugging. Remus looked contemplative, and if Harry knew the Werewolf, he was putting together the information. Sirius on the other hand, he looked confused. And worse then that, he almost looked…hurt.

"Where are you actually from?" Sirius demanded staring eye to eye with Harry. The time-traveler winced and glanced away.

It was Remus' voice that actually answered the question, with one of his own. "It's not 'where' at all, is it? It's a matter of when. When did you come from? And how did you get here?"

"You sound like you already have the answers, Remus," Hermione whispered.

"Why don't we take this inside, mates?" James whispered. "I think we can afford to miss first class, after all."

"Guess we don't have much of a choice, do we?" Hermione asked, and no one knew if she was talking about missing class or the inevitable conversation.

OoOoO

They had snuck back into the boys' dorm. The Marauders each sat on their own beds, while Harry and Hermione sat on Harry's. Nothing had been said. Even James hadn't bothered with small talk. Sitting there staring at each other, Harry wished someone would just _say_ something to clear up the silence. Unfortunately for Harry, things have a tendency to go to Hell, even when he gets what he wants.

It was Sirius who spoke first.

"It's not a coincidence that you look like James, is it?" He asked and the two stared at each other, one guilty and the other imploring.

"No, it's really not," Harry admitted.

"How? How are you related to him?" Sirius asked next and from the look James gave him Harry knew he had picked up on it himself. Sirius already knew the answer, and he really didn't want it to be the truth.

"You already know that, Sirius," Harry whispered and Remus cut in.

"How far in the future are you from?" he asked. "I mean, you're our age, so it can't be too far, can it? I always figured James would have kids right out of school so…"

Harry barely heard the rest of Remus' sentence because the moment the wolf said 'kids' Sirius had reacted. Sharply, distressedly. When he had caught Sirius' gaze again all he saw was the guilt. With his insides clenching Harry tore his gaze away and looked at Hermione instead, who looked as upset as Harry felt. Her arms slid around him and her head rested on his shoulder.

"_Be strong, Harry. It will work out for you." _She whispered in his head and Harry sighed before answering.

"Twenty years," he forced the truth out, hating himself for putting the depressed glaze into Sirius' eyes.

OoOoO

The questions had been simple really. The Marauders hadn't pushed when Harry told them he couldn't answer certain questions. They had solemnly agreed that it stayed between the five of them. Though Remus was curious as to why Harry was not willing to tell Peter, let alone Lily.

Harry had replied that Lily would probably freak the heck out. She might adore Harry, and there was no question that she did, but finding out that he was her son could ruin the future. Then he had avoided the topic of Peter. Because while Harry hated the rat that had betrayed the Potters, or would in the future anyway, he was uncertain where this particular Wormtail's loyalties lied.

Then came the questions about Terrance.

"How do you know him?" James asked. "He belongs here. We've gone to school with him since first year."

"He showed up in our time last year. Just out of the blue. He was sorted into Slytherin." Harry paused, shaking his head. "No one really questioned it. We were all so busy. So Terrance O'Connor entered into Hogwarts life. He adjusted quickly, though put into perspective, there wasn't much to adjust to."

"He befriended Ron," Hermione murmured as she thought back. "He must have known."

"Yeah, he befriended Ron, and Ginny, almost as soon as he arrived." Harry turned his gaze to Hermione, no longer pretending not to stare at the mixture of emotions on Sirius' face.

"We didn't question it. We were so damned busy we didn't question it." Hermione squeezed her eyes shut as her hands clenched into fists. "Worse then that, Harry, he knows what happened that Halloween."

Harry froze. His body stopped moving, his eyes no longer shifted. Sirius couldn't see the breath come out of his mouth. If it was at all possible, Sirius would have suspected that Harry turned into a statue on the spot, but there were no wands out and no one had said the words. Worry was etched into the young man's eyes and Sirius watched as Hermione squeezed her eyes shut before trying to gain the frozen boy's attention.

"He knows what happened, but he doesn't know why or how. There is no way Terrance can change Halloween too extremely. He wouldn't anyway…" Harry sighed deeply. "Terrance is going to try and hold Halloween over my head. A threat of sorts. Naturally, we can't let it bear fruit, but until that becomes an issue, he's not going to tell the Snake King about it." Harry closed his mouth and his eyes.

"Why," Sirius' voice broke his reflection. "Why do I have the feeling your life is more involved with Voldemort's than ours has been?"

"Because you worry too much?" Harry answered back with a careful smile on his face, and Sirius scowled at him, a smile flirting at the edges of his lips.

"Were you ever taught to become Animagi?" James asked and Sirius and Remus both scowled at him. "What?" He defended. "I know you both were wondering the same thing!"

Harry and Hermione exchanged a look, remembering how after Sirius had returned, he had set about driving everyone crazy as he searched for the Marauders' books on becoming Animagi. He was extremely insistent that Hermione and Harry learn… Molly refused to let her children do something so illegal, not to mention dangerous.

"Yeah, we were taught, we just don't have much practice with it." Hermione answered honestly. James beamed at them.

"Great, you can come with us then next time!" The older Potter's smile was contagious and Harry found himself smiling in return even as he shook his head in denial.

"The full moon is a Marauder thing. I think Peter would be more then a little suspicious if we suddenly showed up."

"But you need to practice!" James insisted. "It's the only way to get better!"

"James," Hermione spoke. "We'll practice changing but leave the full moon to the Marauders. It's best that way."

James scowled and cursed under his breath. Hermione chucked softly to herself while Remus watched her with intrigued eyes. Hermione glanced up at him, and smiled through her blush. She turned her head almost immediately and spotted the staring match that was going on with Sirius and Harry.

Hermione shifted so her head rested on his shoulder and smirked to herself._ "Just go over there and fuck him senseless,"_ she thought at her best friend and the young man gapped at her.

"HERMIONE!" he shouted, horrified, and the Marauders jumped from their respective beds as the girl in question laughed wildly.

"_You know you want to, Harrykins."_ She teased silently and batted her lashes at him.

"That may be, but I don't need to hear it coming from you!"

Hermione's laughter resounded anew as she hopped off the bed and strolled to the door. "We've already missed first class, but we should get to second, you know?" Remus hurried to follow her and James trailed behind. He glanced at his son and his best friend before offering them both a smile and walking out.

"Well, that wasn't obvious or anything…" Harry snickered and all of the sudden Sirius was there, standing in front of him, hands on either side of Harry.

"What happened on Halloween?" And that was the last thing Harry expected to hear from Sirius. As he stared into the older boy's eyes he could almost see that Sirius was as confused by his question as Harry was.

"Nothing that you ever want to know," Harry replied starkly and evasively.

One of Sirius' hands left the bedspread, ghosting up Harry's back and into his hair, tugging to raise the young man's face. They stared at each other, eye to eye, for what felt like eternity before Sirius' head dipped and his breath was hot against Harry's ear. "I can accept that you've got your secrets…" he whispered harshly. Harry felt his eyes fall as Sirius lips drifted over his cheek. "But don't ever lie to me."

Sirius strolled away, scooping up his bag as he did so, leaving Harry sitting on his bed with heavy breath, glazed eyes and a racing heart.

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

Lady Starlight :D 


	11. Chapter 11

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Eleven.**

Harry was still sitting there staring after Sirius when Hermione shouted in his head for him to hurry up. Jolted from the delicious visions that had been playing through his head, Harry raced out of the dorm room and out of the common room. He found his friends loitering in front of their next class.

"Took yah long enough," James teased. "Thank God you're faster in the air than you are on foot."

"Haha," Harry grumbled. "Laugh all you want, Potter."

"I will, thank you," James grinned and laughed again at Harry's annoyed expression.

Class passed in a blur. No one, sans Lily, was really paying any attention. All were lost in their own thoughts. Questions formed in Remus' head. Things he'd like to know about Hermione… and Harry, of course. He was curious about the future, about what they were risking by staying in the past. More than that, he was curious how they had gotten to the past in the first place. From what he had heard, he didn't believe they knew. Not that they had really asked that. The question and answer time in the dorm had been so tense and the situation so surprising that no one really had any questions formed. Pulling out a sheet of parchment, Remus began jotting down all the things he would like to know. He didn't notice when his time travel questions started circling closer and closer to personal questions about Hermione.

James let his eyes drift between his friends, to Remus' fast scribbling, to Lily's firm attention, and Hermione's slouched shoulders (a sure sign she was exhausted, at least mentally), and Harry's lazy countenance, which James assumed was because he was daydreaming. But when Harry's head turned to stare at Sirius, James watched the sparks fly between them and he couldn't help but wonder if they bounced around as badly between Harry and his Godfather. The air between the two intensified and James glanced away, back to the teacher who was lecturing on Merlin knows what.

Harry felt the lust rise up and attack his defenses. Tensely fighting back the impulses that screamed at him to reach over and molest Sirius he slouched in his seat farther and thought of Snape in Mrs. Longbottom's dress and hat. It did the trick, until Sirius' eyes lit up with a dangerous amusement that stirred his damned hormones to the front. For the sake of his own sanity Harry tore his eyes way from Sirius' and groaned silently as the quiet chuckle sent shivers up his spine. Damned seventeen-year-old hormones!

OoOoO

When class was finally over for the day they still had two hours before dinner. While Harry only wanted to find the nearest empty classroom and drag Sirius with him, he knew that was unlikely to happen because the young man was unsure of Harry now that he knew about James' involvement.

"Not going to happen, gorgeous," Sirius murmured against his ear and Harry turned his head to meet the mans sapphire eyes, one eyebrow cocked. "I can see the wheels turning in your head, your desires playing through your eyes." A breath separated their lips, their position drawing their friends' attention more then their unheard words. "Unfortunately," Sirius said as he stepped back. "You're my best friend's son."

Harry would deny it later, but he had to blink several times in order to focus on something other then Sirius. Their friends' chorus of "let's go" stirred them both to life and Harry followed only steps behind. Running a hand through his thick hair he paused his steps. "Hermione?" he asked instead and the girl dropped back. "Let's go into Muggle London, alright? There is something I want to do."

"Alright, but you can't get into your vault," Hermione reminded him as they climbed the stairs to the Common Room.

"Don't need to, I always have money on me. Both Muggle and Wizard. There should be more than enough for what I want to do."

James glanced behind them when Lily was out of earshot. "Do you want to take the map?" he asked as Peter stepped up beside him. Disgust and distrust layered onto the rat's face but no one noticed. Harry merely shook his head.

"I don't need _your _map," he said, the emphasis having an obvious meaning to three of the Marauders.

"Strange," was all James said on the subject.

Both time travelers hurried to their dorms to change into Muggle clothing and grab coats. Harry dropped his wallet into his coat pocket and was walking out of the dorm when the Marauders came in. "We'll be back later, hopefully before curfew."

"Have fun," James said. "Bring me something back from the land of the Muggles."

Harry snorted and walked out, feeling their eyes penetrate his back. More appropriately, Harry turned his head and offered a wink to Sirius, who just smirked.

"You're a fucking tease," James snickered after Harry had left. "You're going to drive him out of his mind."

"Yes, that was the plan." Sirius jumped onto his own bed, thinking of the young man who had just left.

"Sure it is," James agreed, though both Sirius and James knew the disbelief in James' voice. Neither of them brought it up, though. Remus shook his head as he pulled out his homework.

"I'm going to finish this before dinner. I'll see the three of you there." He settled into his bunk, and blocked out his friends with the ability he had developed and enhanced over the years.

Peter watched Remus work silently. He glanced to Sirius and James, curious about their unwavering trust in Harry Granger. The boy was bad news to him. He just couldn't figure out why he didn't trust Harry. And he knew without a good reason that neither James, nor Sirius, let alone Remus, would take his beliefs seriously.

Time passed slowly, quietly. The Marauders sat in their own bunks as they did their homework and Peter, feeling ridiculously slow and stupid, had made his excuses early in the two hours and gone to the library. A while after that James had put his schoolwork away with the belief that he'd go and find Lily. He strolled past Sirius' bed and glanced down at the parchment. A snicker escaped him as he took in the doodles that covered the page.

"You might want to try doing the work, Paddy." There was a shrug that Padfoot didn't see as he stared at a doodle of Harry on his Firebolt. James' next words however caused him to look up in disbelief. "Or him, it really doesn't matter to me which."

Sirius kept his dark eyes on James' as he let his best friend's words work through his head. "How long have you known?" he asked, the rest of his sentence unnecessary because they both know he was talking about Harry's secret.

"A while." Sirius cocked an eye brow, waiting for more detail. "Well, there's really not much you can keep from a Marauder when they've got their mind to find something out. It's especially easy when he thinks the only person who can hear his conversation is his best friend."

"You used the mirror." It wasn't a question and James didn't bother responding to it. So Sirius nodded his head and asked again, "When?"

"The first time you kissed him… I think. It's been a while, not long, but a while."

Sirius nodded again and turned back to his doodles. Not really sure what else to say, James just watched his friend doodle before walking out of the dorm room in search for his girlfriend. His Lily. The future mother of his children.

A smile bloomed over James' face as he thought of that. Now all he had to do was make sure he didn't screw things up before they graduated so that Lily had nothing to hold over him while he worked his magic and got her to believe that getting married was all her idea. That way there was no way she could pull out of it. James grinned to himself as he pulled her away from her dorm mates. Ignoring both Lily and Ashley's protests he pulled his flower out of the Common Room.

OoOoO

"I can't believe you're serious," Hermione muttered and glared at Harry when she spotted the lift in his lips. "Don't you dare answer that."

The Boy-Who-Lived chuckled as he combed his fingers through his hair. "I think it's time. I kept meaning to at home, but there was never the chance, and then we ended up here and I didn't think of it again."

"Mhhmm, this wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that Sirius is being a total tease would it? You don't want to get all gorgeous and pretty in order to taunt the shit out of him?"

"Of course not. I'm not that petty." Harry replied swiftly and Hermione laughed in her disbelief.

"You keep telling yourself that, love, maybe you might believe it."

Harry scowled at her, "I will, thank you very much," he replied and they both laughed as a young woman, in her early twenties, walked towards them.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Yes, I was wondering if you had any free time tonight," Harry smiled at her and Hermione rolled her eyes when she noticed the dreamy look enter the receptionist's gaze.

"You're just in luck. We actually had two appointments for this evening cancel. Something about a school function."

"Oh," Hermione interrupted. "We only need one. I'm not-"

"You are."

Hermione turned to scowl at her best friend. "It's really unnecessary. Unlike you, I don't have an uncontrollable mane of hair to deal with."

Harry's hand whipped up, tugging on Hermione's ever-growing hair. "Be that as it may, I know that you prefer to have your hair shorter." His hands skimmed the bottom of her hair. "Trust me, love, it's getting far too long."

"You seem to think your opinion matters. It's my hair, love." Hermione growled.

Harry smiled back. "Make it two appointments. Mione, you're not the one that has to listen to you bitch about how long your hair is."

"I do not bitch!" Hermione growled.

"No," Harry agreed. Though Hermione could hear the faint _'yet' _echo in her mind. "But the faint grumblings have been getting louder."

"Fine!" Hermione snapped. "Make it two appointments."

The receptionist, whose eyes had been bouncing back and forth, finally looked back to her date book. "Alright, two appointments. We are free in one hour and a half."

"That works," Harry grinned happily as he gave her their names. Their real names. As the two walked out of the salon Harry lead her in the direction of the mall. "We can grab some dinner there then wander around as we wait."

"Fine by me, since you're paying."

The fast food they ordered was anything but nutritious as it was smothered in grease and over-salted, but it was a change from the Hogwarts cooking that they both appreciated. Harry watched in fascination the other teenagers that lingered in the mall; the variety of dress and appearance, the light colours, the dark colours, the all-black with blue Mohawks and half-a-dozen facial piercings. It wasn't something he'd ever see at school in the past or the present (err…future?); the most creative the Witches and Wizards got was wearing Muggle clothes on the weekends.

Harry pulled on the sleeve of his leather jacket (a present from the twins for his seventeenth) and wondered how much getting something stuck in your face would hurt. He watched a couple dressed in black walk by their table. Both were tall and thin, the male had a dozen chains connected to his belt and his lip was pierced. While the female wore a small black skirt and fishnet stockings and her left ear was covered from the top to the bottom in earrings.

"I wonder," Harry muttered and Hermione glared at him.

"Don't even think it, Potter. There is no way I am letting you walk around looking like them." Hermione eyed the couple; the male had long straight black hair while his girlfriend had long bangs and the hair at the back of her head was very short, and she was bleach-blonde.

"I think it'd be fun. You know, freak out society a bit."

"See, I doubt anyone would appreciate you corrupting the school into looking like, well, is there a word for that?" Harry snickered and smiled at his sister. Neither of them mentioned that they were talking about the school in their time, not the school the Marauders ruled.

Harry stood up and grabbed her hand. "Let's go look around. We never get to spend any time in the Muggle World as it is."

As they traveled through the mall Harry couldn't stop the smile that bloomed over his face. There was no one staring at him, no one pointing and whispering. He wasn't on the receiving end of startled stares or nervous eyes. There were no glaring eyes of the Death Eaters, or confused stares of the Muggles that only knew he had led a war against a very dangerous army. He wasn't Harry Granger here; he had no made-up past that he had to be careful to remember. He had no hidden secrets that could destroy everything. He wasn't Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived any more than he was Harry Granger.

For once, he was just Harry.

He didn't matter.

Merlin, was that a strange relief.

Hermione sent him a smile, letting him know she knew what he was thinking as she linked her hand with his and lead them back to the salon.

Harry paused in front of a Halloween display. He turned to stare up at Hermione and she grinned back. This year, they were going to make a good memory of Halloween. They entered the store to snoop around. As they looked through the display, Hermione felt the playful part of her (the part that was usually kept at bay unless Harry was feeling extremely happy) come out to play.

OoOoO

Dinner wasn't an issue for Sirius that night. He just hadn't been hungry. Besides, he knew that if he got a craving for food he could sneak down into the kitchens and get something. Instead of thinking about food, what occupied that space in his mind was the same thing (or person in this case) that occupied the rest of his mind. Harry Granger – no, he wasn't a Granger, so that should be Harry Potter. Potter, like James. He was James'.

That simple fact ate at Sirius more then James seemed to think was necessary. He could flirt with the boy all he wanted. Torment him with heat and innuendoes. But when it came down to it, Harry was James' son. And wasn't that something to wrap your mind around?

An annoyed growl had him pushing his books off his bed. He had been staring idly at them for some time now and really wasn't interested in doing any of the work. He stretched out and laid his head on his hands at the foot of his bed. Confusion swamped him. It would be so easy if he could separate them in his mind at least. Separate Harry Granger from Harry Potter. He could be interested in one, and not the other, but there was nothing to separate, not really, because they were one and the same. Harry Granger was his best friend's son. Fuck.

It's not like he could just turn around and tell the kid to back the fuck off. Ok, well he could, but he really didn't want to. Maybe he could erase the last twenty-four hours so that he didn't know Harry was James' son. They could go back to the senseless flirting, and there would be no problems. "Great, yeah, that's a good plan." Sirius sighed.

Stifling a groan, Sirius glanced at his watch (which he had bought a few years ago while he and James explored the other side of London) and realized it was well past dinner. The Marauders weren't back yet, which meant they were going to be crashing in the Head Rooms. Sirius sighed again and heard quiet laughter. Raising his head he blinked at Harry, unsure if he was seeing things or not.

"Not having a successful night?" Harry asked with a smile.

Sirius had to do a double take as he stared at Harry. "You should wear Muggle clothing more often." He claimed and Harry laughed. Sirius moved into a sitting position and eyed Harry.

"I always wear Muggle clothing, Sirius." He moved to take off his jacket, but Sirius' hand caught the thin fabric of his T-shirt and pulled him over.

"I mean, you should wear _leather_ more often," Sirius murmured before dragging Harry into a kiss. Harry wasn't exactly shocked as he opened his mouth to deepen it. He had seen the lust spark in Sirius' eyes, had felt a quick jolt of pleasure at the knowledge that he had been the one to put that look in his eyes.

He let himself be pulled even closer by the hand still clenched in his shirt, while the other roamed beneath the back of his shirt. Harry let his fingers drift as his mouth plunged and the sound he pulled from Sirius left him chuckling. The vibrations sent shivers through Sirius and he tried to drag Harry even closer against him. This caused Sirius to lean back further until they were flush against each other on top of Sirius' bed. It was Harry who pulled away, his lips trailing over Sirius' neck as his hands reappeared from beneath the older boy's shirt. There was a moan of protest, which received a light chuckle and a quick kiss.

Sirius narrowed his eyes at the boy above him, who was supporting himself on his elbows. Amusement danced in his emerald eyes, almost effectively hiding the uncertainty from Sirius' scrutiny.

Confusion swarmed before it made itself clear. Sirius leaned up on his elbows so that he was face to face with Harry. Staring the younger man in the eye, he took his mouth in another heated kiss. When Sirius broke this kiss he was panting, but grinning. "You're still Harry," he murmured and Harry nodded, his eyes never leaving Sirius.

"And you're still Sirius." There was a moment of hesitation before Harry spoke again. "That doesn't change the fact that I'm his son. That's still out there, Sirius." Harry stood up, causing Sirius to sit back on the edge of his bed.

"I know," he admitted. And it still bothered him. "But I like kissing you despite the fact that you're Prongs' son, not because of it."

"I should hope so," Harry snorted and the two eyed each other before smiling. Harry smirked, shaking his head. He nodded, to himself more then anyone else, and turned to go to his own bed.

"Harry?" Sirius' voice stopped him and Harry turned in time to see Sirius grab his sleeve and pull him close again. This kiss was harder, but just as intense. Sirius' fingers dove through Harry's much shorter spiked hair and rested at the back of his neck, holding Harry's mouth in place. When they broke away this time, Sirius was the one smirking.

"I like the hair, Harry."

And Harry chuckled as he got ready for bed.

… _TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	12. Chapter 12

_Rambles – So, I'd like you all to know... I finally changed the error in this story about _'mom' 'ma' 'soeur' _It_ _has been corrected after more then a dozen reviews that told me of it... grins I always said I'd fix that the day I fixed the_ 'Alicia' 'Alice' _mistake... and that date is Feb. 16/08..._

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Twelve.**

The next morning Hermione awoke before any of her dorm mates. It wasn't that unusual, though Lily was usually close competition. Hermione showered and got ready for school before gathering her things for the morning and climbed her way down into the common room. It was still frightfully early and none of the other students were awake, so she settled in front of one of the fires and pulled out her latest murder mystery.

They had become an addiction to her over the past two years. While her life contained one death after another she had found solace in the fiction, in the worlds where the bad guys were always caught and the good guys lived happily ever after. Unless there was a sequel.

Hermione really hoped Voldemort didn't have a trilogy, because the sequel was more then enough.

The slamming of the portrait caught her attention and Hermione looked up to see Remus rushing in, heading for the dorms. "Now, why, I wonder," she asked in order to snag his attention. Remus turned around and blushed when he saw her. "Would you need to spend the night outside your dorm?"

Remus coughed, the blush still staining his cheeks. "We – ah… we were working in the Heads' Common Room and…" he seemed at loss for words and Hermione giggled, shaking her head.

"Never mind, Remus. I'm just harassing you." She flashed him a smile as he slid into the chair beside her.

"Sorry… it's, well, it was James' idea," Remus admitted.

"I see. I take it you left Sirius in the dorm?"

Remus looked down at his shoes, his cheeks flushing pink again. "He thought… well, see…"

Hermione put a halt to his nervous words as she smiled at him. "I understand, you know? Throw Sirius into the lion's den. See how he survives."

"What?" Remus raised his head, looking alarmed. "No, it's just, we though he needed to deal with the whole Harry thing. Like, either, well -" Remus glanced down again. "I'm sure you can understand what James was getting at."

"Oh, that's ringing lots of loud bells," Hermione agreed. They smiled at each other before glancing away.

Remus was finally the first to speak again. "Hermione, Sirius and Harry… where you're from, are they…" But he trails off, almost embarrassed to even be thinking of asking that question.

"No," Hermione answered, the question not needing to be finished. "They're not. They love each other, but it's the same way he loves you or me." Remus smiled slightly. "Their relationship has always been very close, but it usually revolves around 'Don't you dare get yourself killed, you little shit-head. I am so not cleaning up your mess this time.' And 'Oh, please, we both know that if I get into any trouble, you'll be running to the rescue trying to play white knight. Then you'll get yourself killed and I'll have to bring you back from the dead so that I can yell at you and kill you myself.' They're protective, but they've got reason to be."

"Does Harry get into a lot of trouble?" Remus asked and Hermione shook her head, smiling at him.

"You're fishing."

"I can't help it. It's fascinating. You have to admit that. If you were in my place, you'd be the first to admit that you'd be fishing for information."

"Of course, I'd just be more subtle about how I went fishing for it."

"Sometimes the direct approach works better," Remus insisted and Hermione cocked an eyebrow in disbelief.

"Oh, and when would that be?"

"When I want a straight answer and am really not interested in lies and bullshit excuses."

Hermione froze, her eyes widening. Oh, this really wasn't good. She picked up her books, ready to make a hasty exit. But the question came too fast. "Why don't you want us to tell Peter?"

Oh, fuck. And Remus, teenager or Professor, could sense a lie a mile away.

Hermione turned and stared at him. She really had no other option. Her hands clenched her backpack and the amber eyes never left her. Lies built up inside her, cover story after cover story. And she knew he'd see right though them. He was asking for her honesty here. And she really couldn't give it, not completely.

"He's weak," she finally replied. "He's always been weak, and he always will be weak."

Remus stared at her, as if sensing that there was more to that story. Instead he nodded, and in the back of his eyes she saw that tiny bit of pain that he felt having received the news. And she hurt for making him hurt.

"At least that's honest." He replied though they both knew that there was a part of him that knew it wasn't the full story. "Thank you." Remus stared at her again, his head tilted and questing. He turned around, once again heading up to the boys' dorm.

"Remus?" Hermione asked, stopping him. He turned around, knowledge in his amber eyes.

"I won't risk your existence, Hermione. But there are already too many lies floating around." He quirked his lips, but the smile never reached his eyes. "A little insight never hurt anybody."

Hermione closed her eyes as she thought of the rest of that particular saying. _But a lot can kill you._

Remus walked up to his dorm slowly. Hermione might not have realized it, but she had told him more than she had intended. More then she probably realized she had said.

He wanted to turn back, to wrap his arms around her and wipe away her pain. But that couldn't be. They couldn't be, no matter what his fantasies turned towards. In the long run he couldn't have her any more then Sirius and Harry could have each other.

Though from all appearances it looked like they really didn't mind.

"God damn it! Padfoot! Harry! Get off each other!" Remus growled as he spied the two of them making out on the window seat that Harry was sitting on.

The two black-haired young men moved apart and glanced at Remus. The werewolf growled and glared at them darkly. "Some of us really don't want that mental image, boys."

"Sowwy, Moony," they both pouted childishly.

"We won't do it again," Sirius even went as far as to plead. And it was the faux-innocence on his face rather then the words that caused Remus to snort in disbelief.

"The day I believe that is the day you've been celibate for fifteen years," Remus snorted as he grabbed his school clothes and headed for the bathroom.

Harry was chuckling, his head thrown back and eyes lit with amusement. "He's got a point there; the innocence act doesn't work for you, Siri."

Sirius fluttered his eyelashes as Harry laughed. "It doesn't suit you, Sirius."

"I'm sure I can convince you," Sirius said as he pulled one of Harry's belt loops to tug the boy closer, "that there is a lot that suits me."

"Oh, I'm sure there is, but it's too early in the morning to witness it." Both males paused as they turned to stare at James. And Sirius stepped away from Harry.

James passed him an apologetic look as he walked into the bathroom and Harry fringed a shrug in his direction. Sirius piled his school things into his bag, not looking at Harry. Both were already showered and ready for class. Harry dropped onto his own bed, pulling out his warn copy of _Quidditch Through the Ages. _

Sirius paused in his movements and glanced behind him. The young man had his feet stretched out, one leg over the other, and his back leaning up against the wall. He looked calm, relaxed even. It was only because he was staring that Sirius noticed the shift in Harry's stance. The hidden awareness became obvious as the boy's eyes glanced up over the top of the book.

"I'm sorry," Sirius finally said. Harry watched him for a moment longer before sighing.

"I want to say don't worry about it. That it doesn't matter. But the thing is…"

"It does," Sirius concluded and Harry nodded.

"Yeah, it does."

"It's just that…" Sirius hesitated and Harry sighed.

"How about you figure it out before you go trying to explain it to me. Point is, Sirius, I'd probably agree. And besides," Harry smirked. "Making out in front of James? So not on my list of things-to-do."

Sirius smiled at him, one of those grins that can make the first years faint and the older students drool with lust. Fuck if he wasn't gorgeous.

The moment was ruined when Remus burst out of the bathroom, staring at Harry. "Did Hermione cut her hair?" he asked and the young Wizard nearly fell off his bed laughing. Harry clutched his sides, eyes bright with humor.

"Do I even want to know why you were thinking of my sister in the shower?" Harry asked before he quite literally fell off his bed from laughter.

Remus scowled at him, before turning to glare at Sirius, red staining his cheeks. "What have you done to him, Padfoot?"

"Only good things, my dear wolf, only good things."

Remus flushed even more, silenced Harry with a curse (though it didn't wipe the obviously-felt hilarity off his face) and collected his schoolbooks. James strolled out of the bathroom. He cocked an eye brow at his silently laughing son, his smirking best friend, and his annoyed (and embarrassed) werewolf. "I don't think I want to know."

"You really don't," Sirius agreed and Remus glared at him. "It's true, and you might as well take the spell off Harry."

Remus turned to Harry with a glare. "Are you going to stop laughing?" He demanded and Harry nodded rapidly. Remus muttered the counter while still glaring at Harry. A strange combination of a laugh and a snicker escaped the younger boy and he placed his hand over his own mouth to smother it. Remus glared at him again before shaking his head.

Sirius watched his friends with light eyes before frowning. "Was Wormy getting ready in the Heads' Room?" he asked and James flicked a frown over the three others.

"I think so. If he didn't follow us up, he must be."

Harry got to his feet, smiling between the faces until he caught Remus' eyes. And saw the distress hidden in them. A frown flittered over his own face before his attention was snagged by the ever-persistent James. The young version of Harry's father ran his fingers through the short spikes and snickered.

"I like the hair, but don't you think it's kind of pointless? It's all going to grow back within the week."

"That would be why I cast a growth stunting spell on it. Trust me, Jamie, I know how the Potter hair works." Surprise flickered through James' eyes as he contemplated that idea.

"Huh, growth stunting. I wonder why I've never thought of that."

"Considering everything else you've tried?" Sirius asked rhetorically, more to have something distract him from the obvious family conversation that was happening.

"Ahh, shut up, Paddy," James whined and led the four males down into the Common Room.

Lily and Hermione were sitting in front of the fire, the redhead was talking. "I do like it. I think it suits you."

"Thank you, I wasn't all too sure at first, but it's growing on me."

Her long curls had been cut to just below her shoulders and the shorter length was framed around her face, making her hair look less curly. The males walked up and James studied the brunette, a frown on his face.

"I wouldn't have noticed," he said and Harry snickered, earning a glare from Remus. Hermione and Lily glanced at each other and rolled their eyes.

"That would be because you're male," the redhead claimed and James pouted at her. "Oh, please, you wouldn't notice if I cut off my hair and died it green."

"Now, that I would notice, my Love," James said as he smoothly slid his arms around her. "Because contrary to popular belief, my favorite color is green, not red."

Harry snickered, a smirk on his face. Lily glanced at him, a smile spreading over her face. "Oh! I love the short hair!"

A giggle escaped Harry and Remus smacked him upside the head. The barely restrained laughter bust out and the hero leant against Sirius in the pretense of keeping himself standing.

"Do I want to know?" Lily and Hermione muttered in unison and Harry shook his head, still laughing.

"Oh, shut up, you bloody…" Remus trailed off, glancing from Sirius to Harry and then to Hermione. They said they were Animagi, but they had never said _what_ they were.

Harry cast a wicked grin at Remus before smothering his laughter and linking his arms through Hermione's. "You were right, _ma soeur._" (my sister)

"Of course I was. The male gender will never notice when a female changes her hair at first glance. Unless it's pointed out to them."

The common room was bursting with life and the group headed to the Great Hall as the Marauders heatedly denied Hermione's accusations.

… _TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	13. Chapter 13

_Rambles - Ok, so the winner of my last lyric challange was: __overchay, who totally wins at life for knowing that those lyrics were from Taking Back Sunday's "Number 5 with a Bullet" So, go you. Since it's 6am here, I'm going to give you another one. "I'll kiss you on the neck, people will stare but we wont care" again, it's one of my fav songs right now. Let's see if any one knows it..._

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Thirteen.**

Peter sat in Divination while everyone else was in Potions, and he thought about the dynamics of his friends. Used to be James was the leader, Sirius his second-in-command. Things had worked when it was that way, you know? The Marauders were pulling outrageous pranks, and the whole school loved them for it. Except the Slytherins, naturally. Remus had been the cool-headed one who kept a rein over them and their wacky ideas.

But then, James had started to mellow out. Suddenly Lily became more important than the pranks. Oh, sure, he still pulled them, but there was a much more mature style to his self and the pranks. They were less impulsive, less mean. The pranks took on a playful quality that Remus had approved of and Lily hadn't rejected altogether. Sirius hadn't cared. He was just glad that his best mate was still willing to cause chaos. It had been a weird transition for Peter. He had become used to being friends with three of the most dangerous wizards in Hogwarts. No one had wanted to piss off the Marauders for fear they'd meet with the pointy end of James' or Sirius' wand. It had been a comfort to know that Peter could turn to his friends for revenge against the others in their school.

He couldn't do that anymore. Not that he was still being teased a lot, but it happened, mostly by the Slytherins. James and Sirius no longer drew their wands to curse the snakes in retaliation. Even their revenge pranks weren't as vengeful. And Peter could - _accept _- that James didn't want to lose Lily. But why change something that had worked so well for so many years?

But the changes had happened, and they had still been the Marauders. The four troublemakers of Hogwarts. They were mostly inseparable. Even with Lily in the picture they were still the Marauders.

But now…

Peter frowned, thinking of his friends. James might still be the unofficial 'leader' but he wasn't really taking an active interest in that role. Even Sirius wasn't as interested in being a Marauder. Not the pranking part of it anyway. He was far too preoccupied with his pretty little James look-alike.

And that thought brought him around to Harry. The boy had moved in and taken over so quickly and quietly that Peter hadn't even realized what was happening until it was all over with. It had been almost two and a half weeks since Sirius and Harry had started… well, whatever they had started. You could walk in on them making out, but the moment they realized you were in the room they'd stop. They'd barely touch when the whole group was there.

Harry had showed up, befriended the Marauders, sent girls drooling as he made Quidditch Seeker, and won Gryffindor's first match (their second was just before the holidays), annoyed the heck out of the Slytherins, proved he was as smart as his brainiac sister as well as Lily, Remus, James and Sirius. At the same time he managed to unknowingly seduce Sirius, and Lily adored him, James respected his ideas, Remus had actually _confided_ in him about his werewolf issues, and as for Sirius, he just wanted to fuck his pretty Seeker toy.

Everything had changed. The Marauders were really not the Marauders now. They still shared a dorm, they still talked about past pranks, but they hadn't seriously contemplated any new ones in a very long time. If it wasn't school taking up their time, it was their significant others. James spent most of his free time subtly trying to convince Lily to marry him once school was out, though she hadn't realized that was what he was doing. She was just enjoying the flowers and attention. Sirius was too busy making eyes at Harry when they were together, and Merlin knew what else when they were alone. Even Remus was caught up in Harry, though it was more Harry's sister in his case. Peter was actually somewhat amused at watching their quiet, almost-but-not-quite flirting. Neither really seemed to know what to do with the other, though James was all for throwing out ideas when he wasn't harassing Sirius and Harry.

Peter just didn't get it. He didn't understand what was so bloody _great_ about Harry Granger. He didn't see anything but mistrust and a new haircut. But James and the rest adored him. Peter sighed as his class finished; he picked up his belongings and walked out. He promised himself he'd think on the subject another day, because tomorrow was Halloween and the Marauders (and Harry and Hermione - and Lily) were heading out to Hogsmeade after dinner, though Lily was almost reluctant to do it. James had made her swear to not tell their secret if she wanted to come.

When Peter had asked why Hermione and Harry didn't have to swear James had just shrugged and claimed that they already had.

OoOoO

Terrance glanced over at the small Gryffindor and he couldn't help but snicker. It was pathetic, really. The situation in general and Peter Pettigrew in particular. His six months - eight? A year? He had no clue any more. The time he had spent in the future had been very profitable.

The things he had learnt, the people he had seen. A smirk drifted over his features. It had been pathetically easy to get into Hogwarts, to sneak around under Dumbledore's' radar. And even Snape. Merlin, _that_ was something he wouldn't have expected. But Snape turned out to be such a fucking actor that Terrance hadn't suspected anything until the Dark Lord was murdered and Dumbledore (and fucking _Harry_) was protecting Snape.

He had joined Slytherin with the plan to befriend Lucius Malfoy's son. Now, _his_ friendship with Potter had come as a nasty surprise. The last thing Terrance had expected was to walk in on the two boys while they were talking. They had looked friendly and relaxed. It was only after he had conned his way into Potter's little army of do-gooders that he got the full story. That particular challenge had come easily enough. A compliment here, a praise there, and random angry words about the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord and he was in, mostly.

His ties had been the youngest Weasleys and fuck if they weren't easy to manipulate. They had already been so fucking power hungry and dissatisfied with being bossed around by everyone under the sun. They had been turned on by the idea of what the Dark Lord could give them, and the subtle conversations between the three of them, and later he found out their older brother, Pretence? Perky? Percival? Something like that anyway, had swayed their already mostly-formed decision.

After their initiation, the Finnegan murder… or was it the Thomas one? Terrance couldn't remember which of Harry's roommates had been murdered. It really didn't matter anyway. Well, things had gone a little wild. The Order of the Phoenix, which Harry and Hermione were so clearly involved in, had been searching the school for the murderer. They had never suspected one of their own. Trusting fuckers.

Terrance had gotten close enough that he had been on the very outer edges of the inside. So he had turned his attentions away from the Weasleys and threw them onto Hermione. That had been a fucking mistake. Terrance still had the scar running up his chest from when Harry and Draco had found him afterwards.

And then sodding Whisper. Harry could be one sadistic fuck when he wanted to be. That made sense, though, considering he was James Potter's only offspring. Harry had let those in his Whisper, who knew about the forced attack on Hermione, hunt him down as he ran through the Forbidden Forest, searching for somewhere to Apparate. There hadn't been anywhere. And the minor head start Harry had given him hadn't helped much when the Order joined in the search.

Terrance let out a silent sigh, tracing the scar that ran up his chest. Draco Lucius Alexander Malfoy was one scary fuck. But as he had clearly stated he had learnt all about torture from the very best. Lucius would have been proud. Terrance let a dark snicker escape as he made his way back to the Slytherin Common Room.

The last thing he had expected to find when he had traveled back to his home time was the Boy-Who-Lived and his Trusty-Geek-Girl-Sidekick. The Super-Boy and Book-Girl. Even more amazing than that was the rumor that was going around that Harry and Sirius had hit it off in a more-than-friendly way.

The thought sent him into gales of helpless laughter. Because wasn't that the fucking icing on the whole damned cake. Harry James Potter and the infamous playboy, Sirius Orion Black. A couple. Oh, Merlin, what the tabloids would have paid for proof of THAT.

Maybe he should catch some pictures and send them to the papers in the future. After all, he did know how to use the potion.

OoOoO

Albus Dumbledore stared through the mirror that let him watch his students. There was one in particular that was of keen interest to him lately. Harry Potter. He had been watching the boy off and on since his arrival. He had seen the transformation in his relationship with Sirius. He was curious as to what Harry was thinking in letting _that_ carry on.

He had watched the dynamics of the Gryffindors change to include Harry and Hermione in whatever they did. The quick friendship shifted on a deeper level than Dumbledore could explain. He couldn't help being curious. Albus had watched the weariness and discomfort fade for both time travelers. He had witnessed their private discussions, though hadn't listened to those for fear of what he might find out.

As he had watched the group grow closer, he couldn't help but wonder what was going to change when they realized that Harry and Hermione had to go home.

OoOoO

Minerva McGonagall had always considered herself a fair lady. She didn't obviously favor one house over another. Though if the Gryffindors beat the Slytherins out, well, that was just wonderful, wasn't it? If Snape, or Malfoy, or even McNeill (now that he was back) and the Ms. Blacks got shown up in class, well, it wasn't her fault that her Gryffindors were smarter. Or that they'd deserve house points for whatever answer they had given.

But she was fair, a fair teacher, a fair marker, a fair woman in all the things she did with her life. She was careful and tried to understand any situation she was placed in before she came to a decision on what to do to about it.

She usually had an answer as well.

But this was one situation she couldn't figure out.

Minerva had watched the Marauders grow up in their troublemaking, prank-pulling ways and she had accepted that. Wished they'd stop, but accepted it. When the pranks had mellowed, she had accounted it to Lily's presence in James' life. And now the pranks had stopped altogether.

And she couldn't help but worry about what Hermione and Harry had to do with that. It worried her what would happen. She wanted to rip them away from the Marauders for fear for their own futures. But she couldn't bring herself to say anything about it.

If there was one thing she respected more then most, it would have to be love. And she saw it. Saw it bubbling under the surface between Sirius and Harry. Saw the interest that Hermione and Remus sparked off each other. And she didn't have it in her heart to rip that away from them before they had the chance to experience it.

Minerva sighed, glancing at the books that covered her desk, her chairs, printouts that were pinned to her walls and full notebooks. There were so many different ideas about time travel. The new, more powerful time-turners which the Unspeakables were working on creating would not be available for quite a while, but Minerva had their notes on the subject.

The quest for the information had become an obsession, and Minerva McGonagall didn't easily succumb to obsessions. But this one had taken hold of her and refused to let go. It had started out simply enough. She had been curious how two seventeen-year-old wizards had traveled back twenty years in time. Then she had wanted to have an answer for them, if they ever needed it. She had hoped to find a solution so that they would be able to go home when they had had their fill.

But it was so hard to find the information, and the less information she found, the more she searched. Madam Pince was more then a little curious about Minerva's growing fascination with time travel, and she had been ordering more books on the subject without Minerva even requesting them.

Minerva looked back to her notes and sighed. There had to be something!

OoOoO

Harry was the first one into the dorm room after last class and he ripped off his school uniform quickly. Sirius strolled in behind him, a smile drifting over his gorgeous features as he eyeballed Harry in just his black trousers. Harry felt the stare and his eyes drifted up to grin into Sirius' before he pulled the young man's head to his for a kiss. But true to his unspoken promise to let Sirius work through the James thing Harry let go when the others entered, led by Potter himself. Sirius smiled at Harry, and let their lips touch again before he went to change himself.

James glanced between the two with a roll of his eyes. The distracted concentration on Sirius' face and the silly grin on Harry's made him want to smack their heads together. This had been going on for two weeks now, and while it was clear to James what was going unsaid, he was more then a little annoyed that it still bothered Sirius that Harry was his son.

What the hell had happened to his devil-may-care best friend?

But he knew. And it was only because he knew that he hadn't cursed Sirius for being such an idiot. James laughed to himself as he changed out of his school clothes. They were going into Hogsmeade tonight under the pretence of starting their Christmas shopping. But with the quiet tension of the last two weeks James felt the need to run wild and planned to do so as he started to look for the perfect present for Lily.

OoOoO

While James was contemplating what to buy Lily, the redhead herself was staring at Hermione in bewilderment. "How can you be so casual about it? They're… _we _are sneaking out. To run around town. We're going to get in so much trouble."

"I doubt it," Hermione said as she pulled her hair up into a ponytail. "We're just taking a break." Before Lily could protest Hermione held up her hand. "Can't you see it? The boys need to relax, and you have to figure this is better than whatever prank they have up their sleeves. And besides, haven't you realized what James is letting you in on? The Marauders are his, easy and simple. He's letting you in on something that he created. Not to corrupt you, Lily, but to prove that you're his as well. And he plans to keep you."

Hermione watched the redhead's emerald eyes widen with that realization and she smiled to herself as she pulled on her coat. As she led the way back to the common room, she let Lily mull over that realization.

James bounded over to them, wrapping his arms around Lily's waist and kissing her cheek. He frowned when he received no response and glanced at Hermione in concern. The girl just smiled, letting him know there was no urgent problem.

… _TBC …_

_Reviews - Thank you so much everyone! I love hear what you guys think._

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	14. Chapter 14

_Rambles – I feel so pathetically emo right now, it's not even funny. It's not even the restlessness under my skin that I usually feel. I just feel…well, since I can't really define it… I just feel really emo. Man, I love that word… So, no one played my lyric game… whaaaaaa. I'm unsure about this chapter… part of it just… I didn't like… well, you'll see… Anyway, I like the next chapter much better. Also, Hermione makes reference to a band that's big right now, well, big to me. I've screwed with time, because in '97 it was all about the Spice Girls, and Boy bands, so really not interested in reliving that. So, the Emo-Punk-Rock craze? Yes, that has taken over music in '97. _

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Fourteen.**

They had barely been in Hogsmeade twenty minutes before Sirius was complaining about being hungry, although that really didn't surprise anyone. They made a quick stop into Roz's pub and she smiled happily when she spied them all. After they had eaten they started window-shopping. Then a quick look into a store turned into Harry and Sirius taking off for half an hour before coming back with red cheeks and happy grins.

At some point James had snuck into a store, dragging Sirius with him and Remus had groaned in disgust while Peter snickered. Lily, Hermione and Harry glanced at each other, clueless, before turning their curious eyes to Remus and Peter. Neither budged an inch in giving an explanation. Sirius and James had jogged out, grinning like little boys before the shopping continued.

Hermione had pulled Harry into a store after staring at the display in the window. Harry watched her glance around at the merchandise. Neither knew what she was looking for but when she paused in front of a display Harry was sure she had found it. He watched her fingers drift over the gift, and a smile lingered on her face.

"Remus?" Harry asked and Hermione shrugged.

"Yes," Hermione admitted.

"That's what I thought. Let's get it."

Harry raced to the cashier before Hermione could protest. The shopkeeper smiled at them and handed Harry the bag, Harry handed it to Hermione with a wink.

"Harry," Mione growled and Harry smiled at her.

"Give it to him, don't worry. Besides, you'll pay me back. And you know how much gold I carry around."

"Thank you, Harry," she smiled and the two of them exited the store. The Marauders were down the street a bit further. Harry and Hermione caught up and there were curious glances passed to the bag in Hermione's hands.

Harry strolled up to James and Sirius, pointed to something in the distance and the three black-haired Gryffindors took off running. They entered the store quietly and Sirius' eyes widened as he glanced around. "Sparkly," he said and Harry laughed.

"Just don't touch anything, Paddy," he murmured and Sirius grinned at him.

James was prowling through the glass displays. "I was thinking of giving her the Potter ring," James finally said.

Harry scowled, "James, that's corny."

"It's classic."

"It's corny!" Both Harry and Sirius insisted and James pouted.

"Fine, see if I do anything symbolic for either of you ever again!"

Harry snickered, his head resting on Sirius' shoulder. "And James, stay away from the emeralds. That's over-played."

"Merlin! Why don't you come over here and pick it out yourself, you little shit?"

"Because she'd realize that I did so. This is supposed to be from you, so you get to pick."

"Then will you let me make up my mind?" James growled and Sirius and Harry laughed.

The clerk stared at them in distress. "Can I assist you?" she asked and the tallest boy, the one the others called James, sighed.

"I'm shopping for my girlfriend. I need to harass her into marrying me." The clerk blinked at the seventeen-year-old's choice of words.

"Alright, well, jewelry is always a good choice when wooing a female. It's good that you understand that at a young age."

Sirius and Harry glance at each other and hid their snickers behind a soft kiss which had the clerk blushing madly.

"Oh, um, I hadn't realized…" Harry and Sirius laughed softly while the clerk turned to James. "What's your girl's favorite stone?" she asked and James scowled.

"Actually, I don't know. I just shower her with emeralds, which I've been told it too over-played," James glared at his smirking son. "The emeralds match her eyes, you see." James pointed to Harry. "Their eyes are the same."

"How about sapphires?" She asked and led James to a collection of jewels. "Are you thinking of earrings, or necklaces? Or were you thinking of waving a ring under her nose?"

James thought about this, a frown growing over his handsome features. He glanced to Harry, looking for some hint. Harry shook his head at James. "You're the one that needs to convince her to marry you. I'm so not getting involved in this."

James glanced back to the displays and then to Harry and Sirius. "Why don't you go and keep the others from heading in here? I'll meet up with you after."

Sirius and Harry nodded and took off, leaving James alone with the jewels.

OoOoO

It was dark out, the street lights had been lit, and Harry and Sirius found the group inside the candy shop. Lily cast them a glare as they returned. "Where's James?" she demanded and the two shrugged.

"He'll show up." Harry glanced at his friends. "Halloween shopping, guys?"

"Well, it is tomorrow."

Hermione shook her head, thinking of the stash she and Harry had bought in Muggle London. Lily, Peter, and Remus paid for their purchases while Sirius studied the candy.

James came flying in moments later, no obvious purchase in his hands and both Sirius and Harry cocked an eyebrow at that. James just smirked, casting a wink at Lily's suspicious eyes.

"Is there anywhere else you want to visit?" The Marauders leader asked and there was a round of shaking heads. "Alright, then, back to school."

The group of Gryffindors made their way back through the passage and to their Common Room without any issues. They fell asleep easily that night and the next morning chaos rang true.

Harry was awakened with the extra weight of Sirius jumping on him. With a muffled groan and a glare Sirius laughed and leant down to kiss Harry. "It's Halloween! Time to wake up and have fun!"

Sirius laughed at Harry's muffled groan. "Harry, I'm warning you, you do not want to be the last person awake in this dorm."

Harry's body froze and his head flew up, eyes wide. Finally he was sitting up and Sirius was pushed away till he was resting on his knees, straddling Harry's legs.

"Damn it Sirius! Why'd you have to warn him?" James growled from outside the barrier Harry's bed curtains made.

"Yo," came the muffled greeting in Remus' voice.

There was silence for a few moments before Sirius peeked outside the curtains and shared a glance with James and Remus. "I guess it's Peter."

"Well, he does know better then to sleep in on this day." James beamed at his friends. "I fucking love Halloween."

Sirius turned his body around when he felt Harry tense. The curtains fluttered closed behind him and James and Remus left for the bathrooms. Sirius stared at Harry, concern washing through his features. He picked up the younger man's hand, let his fingers thread with Harry's as he stared the boy in the eye. "What happens on Halloween?" Harry shook his head, the rest of his body perfectly still. Sirius clutched Harry's hand tighter, his sapphire eyes burning. "Babe, what happens to _James_ on Halloween?"

Neither of them heard the endearment, as they were both too distracted by the answer, or what the answer could be. The silence tore between them and Harry looked away from Sirius's dark eyes as a single tear escaped his control. It was all Sirius needed for the far-fetched ideas floating around his head to narrow down to the serious. And he knew. Oh, Merlin, he knew. "Baby," he whispered, not hearing his own words. "Baby, how? When?"

Harry slammed his eyes shut, turning his head so that it was hidden in Sirius' shoulder. "Please, don't ask me what I can't tell you. I'm sorry, Sirius. I'm so sorry."

Sirius' arms wrapped around Harry, holding him tight. It was more instinctive comfort then a specific thought. Someone he loved was in pain, so naturally he had to comfort them. But as he lowered his own head, resting on top of Harry's, his fingers clutched in the back of Harry's pajamas. "Can you change it?" He barely recognized his own voice as the words whisper their way to escape.

_Can_. _Can_ you change it? _Can_ you risk changing that not-so-small fact? Not, _why don't_ you change it. Sirius hadn't said, 'you _have _to change it.' No, because even with the new knowledge, he, well, Harry didn't know what Sirius was thinking or what he felt. But Sirius' choice of words, his use of _'can you' _spoke more about the man's character than anything else.

Harry tightened his arms around the man's back, his head shaking ever so slightly. There was nothing else to distract them from each other and Harry felt Sirius deflate at the news. Harry heard movement outside his bed curtains and by the sounds off it Peter had finally gotten up. And he realized what day it was. There was a scuffle of squeaks, a flurry of swishing clothes and a hammering of his feet before silence took over again.

Sirius pulled back and dragged Harry's mouth to his own. In desperation this time. All needy and hurt and confused. There is no saying 'no' as Sirius' tongue pushes its way into Harry's mouth. As fingers claw up Harry's back, he gets it. He understands that Sirius needs to know he's still alive. That despite what he had just seen, that no matter how many people had just been killed, he was still alive, there was still something for him to fight for. He couldn't get stuck on the numbers, or the faces; those familiar, and those not. He couldn't let himself think about the families and their feelings.

When he tore his lips away, Sirius was staring at him in confusion and Harry looked away. Because it wasn't Sirius he had been thinking about. Sirius had never seen someone killed (tried to kill Snape, sure, but that was different), he had never had to look into the eyes of his friends' parents and tell them their son or daughter was dead. Sirius (this Sirius) had never had to block out the countless faces, dead, alive, broken, bruised, Order, Death Eater, Whisper, innocent or murderer to keep living through another day.

Sirius had never had to do any of those things. But he would. Harry's emerald eyes caught Sirius' sapphire ones, and neither broke the unspoken staring contest. It was too soon, far too soon for Sirius to be mourning his best friend. Bringing his lips back to Sirius' Harry let his fingers tangle in Sirius' thick black hair, and he opened his mind.

He opened his mind and sought out Sirius' own. He pushed his way through the natural thin barriers that every human had protecting the delicateness of their minds. He pushed past them and was surrounded with Sirius' thoughts and memories. Harry saw several thoughts about himself that caused a blush to stain his cheeks. And while he'd like to look more into _those_ particular thoughts and images, he had something else to do. Finding Sirius' realization about James and Halloween he gathered the memory tight, bound it together in an unbreakable chain, and then he threw it, deep into the unventured recess of Sirius' mind. He buried it under pranks and laughter and memories of Sirius' family that he _knew_ Sirius didn't want to remember. He buried the knowledge about James and Halloween carefully and thoroughly. As Harry pulled out he replaced the barriers around Sirius' mind.

They were still kissing when Sirius felt his head go foggy, and he knew from experience it wasn't foggy because he was kissing Harry. Detaching himself was hard, because really, he could spend all day kissing Harry. And, mmmm, what a tasty thought that was. Maybe tomorrow, since it was Sunday… Sirius dropped another kiss on Harry's lips before grinning.

"So, Peter is the last one awake. It hasn't been him for a while… James started it in first year. Last person awake gets pranked by the rest of the Marauders, since we never could keep a roommate. Though after five years of pranking the rest of us, we finally got him back last year. Remus, Peter and I woke up extra early just to make sure we'd get him."

Harry gifted Sirius with a smile, however forced they both realized it to be. "Well, thanks for waking me then. I really don't want to be on the other end of a Marauders prank."

"Don't I know it," Sirius agreed. As Sirius bounced off of Harry to go and harass his mates, the guilt set in.

Harry had been sitting on his bunk only for a few moments when Remus whipped his curtains open. The werewolf stared at Harry and Harry swore. _Oh, shit, what if Remus heard. _

"I didn't hear," Remus said and Harry raised his eyes in speculation. Was the wolf reading minds now? It wouldn't surprise him. "But I figure with the angst you're projecting, and the fact that he's harassing Petey and James already, you did something." Harry opened his mouth to refute the comment, Remus only held up a hand. "I'm going to tell you this; if you thought it was necessary to do, then you shouldn't beat yourself up about it. You're in one hell of a situation right now, Harry. You don't only have to survive in our time, but you have to make sure that _your_ time is unchanged. Whatever you did, the consequences of not doing it could have been worse."

"You don't even know what I did," Harry reminded his werewolf friend. "Why are you…"

Remus shook his head, halting Harry's speech. "You didn't kill him. He's not injured in anyway. And he's perfectly happy. I'm not seeing how you did anything wrong. Letting him suffer, that would have been wrong, though."

Harry smiled at Remus, though it barely reached his eyes. "Thank you," he said and Remus nodded easily. Harry stood up and placed a kiss on Remus' cheek. The wolf blushed and glanced away, causing Harry to laugh. "Don't worry, Moony, you'll get used to it." And this time, when Harry smiled, it lit up his face, eyes included.

Harry flew into the bathroom and was quickly showered and dressed. He came out to see James sitting on his bed, going through a notebook. Remus was lying on his bed reading a book. Harry had a sudden insight that the older man's bad posture was due to his bad reading habits. And oh, wouldn't Moony love to hear that.

Sirius finally emerged from the bathroom, still dragging his fingers through his damp hair. James looked at him and snorted in disgust. "If you take any longer prettying yourself up, Harry here might start mistaking you for a girl."

"Ha ha, mate. Who was it again that took an hour and a half getting ready for his date with a pretty little witch?" Harry watched James and Sirius bicker and a smile surfaced over his face. They were like children with their senseless bickering. But at the same time, Harry knew they did it to make people smile.

Peter walked back in, looking warily at the Marauders. "I'm," he squeaked. "I'm going to work in the library after breakfast."

Peter scurried out; Harry stared after him, a dull thud echoing in his blood stream. Four years. That's all they had left together. Harry tore his eyes away from the door as Sirius laughed. "Poor Petey, he knows what's coming, just not how."

"Alright, girls," James cleared his throat. "Let's get to work!" Sirius and Remus jumped onto James' bed, while James reached under his bed for a notebook. James glanced up, and grinned at Harry. "Come on," he beckoned. "It will be fun. Trust me. We don't bite, Harry."

Harry made his way over to the three Marauders and sat on the end of the bed. "You sure about that?" He cast a wink in Remus' direction and the Wolf blushed.

"Well, I'm sure you should be more worried about Padfoot than Moony," Remus smiled back and Harry laughed.

"You're probably right," he said as Sirius pouted and batted his eyes at Harry.

Settling onto the bed, James sitting cross-legged at the head, and Harry mimicking the stance at the foot, Sirius stretched his feet out, letting his head lay in Harry's lap. Remus was also sitting cross-legged in the middle of the bed, eyeing Sirius' obvious laziness with distaste.

"Alright, we have six hours to think of the perfect prank for Petey. Let's get to work."

OoOoO

Hermione woke in her own bed much later than the Marauders. After showering and dressing she went down to breakfast with Lily and Ashley. The three girls giggled together as they looked through the Halloween decorations.

Conversation was light as the three girls ate. It was strange for both Lily and Hermione. Even though they shared a dorm with three other females, they were most often found with the Marauders. But the senseless female chatter between the three made them smile.

Ashley finished her eggs and glanced at Hermione. "If you could date anyone in the world, who would it be?" Ashley asked curiously. "Besides Remus, because we've all seen the two of you around each other."

Hermione blushed three shades of red as she pondered the question. Sure, she was interested in Remus, but thinking beyond that? Hermione's eyes drifted to the Slytherin table before she winced and focused on Ashley's question. Before Remus, it had been Terrance, and before that? Hermione blinked as she realized that she had never had time to form any real crushes growing up.

"Alright," she decided. "There's this band that Harry and I listen to. They're really cute, in the 'I'm almost thirty and can pull off looking sixteen without wanting to' kind of way. So, the rhythm guitarist. Or the lead singer. Hell, even the lead singer's little brother," Hermione winked at her friends. "I'm really not that picky."

The three girls laughed at that and Hermione was glad that she didn't have to throw out any names. That would make things sticky. Glancing at Lily, Ashley asked her the same question.

"Anyone besides James?" The redhead pondered that. Sure she could go the same route as Hermione with a celeb, but… "Alright, since Mione started us with the rock stars, John Lennon." Hermione blinked, thinking back on her musical knowledge as Ashley giggled and the two started talking about Lennon. The name rang a bell but she couldn't place it…

_Lennon, Lennon, Lennon…The Beatles!_ She realized with a smile. Of course, that makes sense. From what she knew about music (which was very little mind you) the Beatles were England's hot thing around this time.

"My turn," Ashley said with a grin. "Bowie, David Bowie."

"Isn't he gay?" Hermione asked. While she had been staying at Grimmauld Place with Sirius, Harry and Remus she had heard a lot of music, and Bowie was one of the favorites between all four of them.

"So?" Ashley asked with a flip of her hair. "Being gay doesn't make you any less attractive. You only have to look at Sirius and Harry to realize that."

Hermione coughed at that, nearly choking on her piece of toast. Her eyes watered as she got her breath back. When she looked up at Ashley, the girl was smirking at her. Lily just laughed, shaking her head.

"You are so bad, Ashley."

The three girls laughed together as they walked back to their common room. As the approached the portrait of the Fat Lady James and Remus appeared. The two were smiling and James grinned when he spotted the girls.

"We're going to eat, and then we're heading outside to get some work done while the weather's nice. Care to join us?" Both girls nodded and the Marauders headed down. Hermione waved her friends off as she walked up to the boys' dorm. Opening the door she caught sight of her boys and smiled.

They were still on James' bed, Sirius' head in Harry's lap. Harry was bent nearly in half as his lips ghosted over Sirius'. And it really couldn't be comfortable, for either of them. Hermione watched as Sirius' arm came up, his fingers running through Harry's still short hair. And she turned around, leaving as quietly as she had entered, a smile still on her face.

… _TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you all. Though for some reason, it took two days for me to receive the emails!!! I know, that was so crazy. I was totally freaking out. I wanted my emails!!!_

_Rambles – This story is the first time I'm writing someone falling in love… I'm kind of unsure about how I'm doing, as I've never been in love so I totally lack the experience of it. Also, the stuff about Bowie? It's correct. He was gay until sometime in the 80's. My best friends obsessed, so I can get the exact year off her if you insist._

_Luv ya'll_

_Starlight :D_


	15. Chapter 15

Rambles - Technically, this chapter was linked to the last, but it seemed to right to end the last chapter where I did. God, that was cute :D I like this chapter, there is something about it, that I just like. There's something about this whole story that I really like, but like most things in my life, I won't be able to put my finger on it until someone points it out to me. God, that's pathetic, because I do love words, and language, but I'm not nearly as good at it as other people. Blah… well… ignore my moodyness and enjoy the chapter.

Who doesn't love Terrance?

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Fifteen. **

Peter ate fast and darted into the library. He figured if he could avoid the Marauders all day, he might escape whatever they had planned for him. Really, the worst thing about being pranked was when you knew to expect it. It could make you even more paranoid than ever, always glancing behind you, checking around the corners before you walked.

Which is why Peter realized that he was being followed, but not by the Marauders. His eyes narrowed on the Slytherin who pulled up a seat beside him in the library. "Peter, right?" McNeill asked. "Peter Pettigrew?"

"Yeah," Peter said tensely. The Slytherin smiled.

"Just reacquainting myself with the faces around here." Terrance grinned again. "I'm McNeill, though your friend Harry likes to call me Terrance."

"I don't think Harry _likes_ you at all," Peter stressed, silently wishing the Slytherin would go away. McNeill laughed richly.

"You're probably right. Harry doesn't like many people, though he certainly got attached to Black and Potter right quick enough. Curious isn't it?" Terrance gave him another smile before leaving.

Peter packed up his books and headed out of the library. He no longer felt like doing his homework. Walking quickly, he wasn't paying as much attention as he should have been and walked straight into a motionless Sirius Black.

When he regained focus he found the taller man smiling at him. "We're going to work out on the grass, you coming?" Padfoot asked and Peter noticed everyone else behind him.

"S-s-sure," he squeaked and the Marauders grinned.

Harry watched as the Rat jumped every so often. He was obviously expecting the prank to come. Harry smirked to himself. Because that was what he wanted, he wanted to watch Peter jump behind trees and squeak and stutter through his words. He wanted to watch the man shake, and as cruel as that was, he couldn't bring it upon himself to care.

They settled on the grass, clumped together, but still paired off, that was obvious. Their Defence books lay open and Harry led the discussion on their assignment about dark creatures. "But, if you thought about it that way, James, wouldn't it be the same as saying all Werewolves are evil?" Harry watched as the Marauders and Lily (Hmm, Harry hadn't realized that she knew) glanced discreetly at Remus.

"Continue," James urged and Harry nodded in consent.

"Both the Vampires and the Werewolves are turned without their consent. There is this curse thrown onto them and they have to survive through it. Not everyone is strong enough to fight through it. Some succumb to the pressure, to the inherited darkness that comes with their curse. But there are others who control it. They take what is supposed to be dark, to be evil, and they use it for good. They don't let the badness of it effect who they are. They use it to help what they believe in."

"You believe strongly that people choose who they become, don't you?" Lily asked and James' eyes never left his.

"I guess so. I think that people make choices. It's their decision and they are responsible for their actions. Someone could be raised in a perfectly nice home, filled with happiness and love, and they can still make the choice to turn around and kill someone else, to betray their friends, and ruin families. They make that choice, to turn their backs on everything they grew up learning. But at the same time, it works the other way around. Just because you grew up in a family with no affection, where you were taught to kill and trained in the most dangerous of potions, just because it's expected that you'll follow in someone else's footsteps, doesn't mean that you have to." Harry raised his eyes from James' and they latched onto the black ones that were staring at him curiously. Severus Snape stood off to the side, eyes locked with Harry's. "There's always a choice. You don't have to be trapped doing what's expected of you. You don't have to become a killer because someone told you it was your destiny."

James turned his head, and watched as Snape walked away. "You really believe it," James murmured. Harry shrugged and glanced back at his text books.

"I think it works the same for all creatures as well."

As the others started talking around Harry, Lily lay her head on James' shoulder and her boyfriend glanced down at her with a smile. James turned his head back to Harry and a smile drifted over his face again.

Sirius and Harry sat side by side, their books in front of them, and their friends around them, but their focus was entirely on each other. Sirius' hand drifted up to Harry's face, pulling said face towards him in a soft kiss. Hermione beamed and James grinned at Lily, kissing her thoroughly. When Harry pulled back he buried his head in Sirius' shoulder and muttered "I could get addicted to kissing you," lowly enough so only Sirius (and Remus) could hear. The dog threw his head back and laughed.

Remus watched them with a smile. It was hard not to smile around the Marauders. His eyes drifted to the girl sitting beside him and they both blushed before glancing away. _If only it was as easy…_ He thought wearily.

He had spent the last couple of weeks watching Hermione… ok, so he spent more than a couple of weeks watching her, but he became more aware of what he was doing after he knew who she was. His thoughts were often occupied by her. It was strange, really, never before had a single girl taken up so much of his time. Remus wasn't James, who'd float between girls even when he had his eyes set on Lily. He wasn't Sirius either, who was willing to sleep with almost anyone until he found the one he could settle with. No, Remus wasn't like either of his friends, and not all of it was because he was a werewolf. He couldn't picture himself bouncing between girls in a rushed need to find _'the one.'_ No, that wasn't who Remus was. As he watched Hermione he came to the conclusion that she wasn't like that either.

Peter glanced at Sirius and Harry, relieved to find that they had stopped kissing and weren't making eyes at each other. When Harry's eyes turned to him, Peter jumped a mile in the air and glanced behind him, a nervous twitch in his neck.

When he looked back at Harry he had to clench his hands together to stop them from shaking. The other boy should be in Slytherin with the power he held with a look. Shaken, Peter turned back to his friends, and their conversation. It took a moment before he remembered that he had been the last person awake, and that whatever happened today went part and parcel with the prank. But still, Peter cast a glance at Harry. He really wished they'd just get it over with. All this waiting was putting him on edge.

OoOoO

It came and it came fast. Because of them he missed dinner, but Peter was finally thankful that it was over. He had been on edge all day, expecting it to come, but unsure about how it would come. Part of their rules was that it had to happen before dinner, but there were no guidelines dictating how it could happen. As dinner had neared Peter was almost thinking they had forgotten. But that hadn't been the case. Five minutes to and it had happened. Peter glared at his reflection as he scrubbed the blue dye off his hands. It was futile, and he knew it, but Peter lathered on more soap, and glared at his reflection. He had no idea how they had done it.

"They're called Blue Bells," Peter heard Harry say and he turned around to glare at the Gryffindor. But he wasn't there. "Turn your entire body blue; every single strand of hair, for at least an hour." The taunting voice was back and Peter clenched his hands together.

"Where are you?" he growled and Harry came out from behind one of the shower curtains.

"Don't attack," he grinned. "My friends gave me those. I kind of mentioned them this morning," Harry grinned brightly and Peter scowled in return. "I wouldn't try undoing it though." Harry waved his hands cautiously. "Otherwise you're going to be like that for the better part of a week."

Peter turned his head up to glare at the black-haired Wizard. "Just leave me alone," he grumbled. He watched Harry look perplexed before he looked apologetic.

"Of course, I understand." Harry walked to the bathroom door and opened it. Before stepping through, he glanced back. "It's just a prank, Peter."

OoOoO

Harry could barely contain his laughter. Oh, it had worked way too perfectly. Was it mean of him that he was taking joy in psychologically scarring Peter? Probably. As he strolled down to the Common Room he was met with a glaring Hermione.

Harry glared back at her, already knowing her argument and not wanting to be mad at her. Hermione shook her head, the glare still in place. Lily glanced between the two in confusion while Sirius snickered and James threw his head back in laughter. Remus sighed at his friends' antics and wondered if it was worth helping Peter get rid of the effects.

"You're too nice, Remy," Harry grinned. "But I wouldn't try it. Those things were designed to retaliate against any spells. You'd only make it worse."

"Am I that obvious?" Remus asked and his two best friends along with the time travelers nodded.

"Yes," they spoke as one.

Sirius glanced at his watch for the fifth time in as many minutes. "Let's go, eh? Our job is done, and I'm _huuuuuuuuuuunnnnnnnnnnnngggggggggggggggrrrrrryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_"

Harry burst out laughing before he found himself being pulled out of the Common Room and down to the Great Hall. The group of six sat so that they could talk to each other, and Ashley chose a seat beside them as well.

The Hall continued to laugh and talk as they ate the feast, and poor Peter had to miss most of it. It was late when they finally returned to their dorms, having spent almost two hours in the Great Hall. Never before had Harry had a Halloween where something disastrous hadn't happened.

It was strange for Harry, because first year was the Troll, and Merlin bless Quirrell for that, because he got Hermione out of the deal; second year was the Death-day Party, and Mrs. Norris. Even before Harry had started Hogwarts, Halloween had been hell for him. Dudley and his fat friends made sure of it. Harry shook his head, glad for a good, healthy memory of Halloween, and tuned back into the conversation going. Lily and Ashley were discussing the finer details of an incident involving James, Sirius and a vast amount of green goo that clung to everything.

When the feast winded down, the group of Gryffindors made their way back to the Common Room, giggly and tired from all the food. Good nights were issued as they separated into their dorm rooms. The Marauders changed quickly into their nightclothes, and climbed into bed. However, Harry opened their large window, and climbed onto the porch, staring out over Hogwarts. Shutting the window slightly, Harry moved to lean against the edge.

Things in the dorm quieted down and Harry assumed the Marauders had made quick work of falling asleep. Harry's eyes drifted upwards, taking in the stars above him, and the edge of the forest, the outline of the Quidditch pitch. So much had changed, but at the same time, so much remained the same. Harry sighed, his gaze returning to the stars. He felt arms wrap around his waist and turned his head to rest on Sirius' shoulder.

"Find what you're looking for?" Sirius asked quietly and Harry shook his head. "_Know_ what you're looking for?" Sirius asked instead and Harry turned, linking his fingers behind Sirius' back.

"Not yet," he admitted before raising his head to the incoming kiss.

They stood there, under the stars and the moon (it would be full next Thursday) with their dorm mates on the other side of the window, and they remained wrapped up in each other. Harry opened his mouth to Sirius' persistent tongue and dragged his hands up through Sirius' hair. Sirius' hands remained at Harry's waist, playing with the hem of his shirt. The kiss continued until breathing became an absolute necessity. Sliding away from each other, so that Harry was pushed up against the railing and Sirius only a step away, the two grinned.

"Night, babe," Sirius punctuated his words with a kiss that left Harry grinning.

"Night, Siri."

When Harry was left alone outside he turned his attention back to the stars. "I wish you could help me. You'd find it hilarious, Sirius." Harry stepped onto the railing and let the air lift him higher. "I guess the irony's not lost on me," he confided as his body drifted away from the school. "I want your help in figuring out how to deal with the younger you." Harry glanced down at the grass beneath him, and let himself fall out of the sky. Landing with the grace of a cat, he sighed. "I miss you a lot. You always make things seem clearer, and unfortunately, that's something the other you hasn't mastered yet."

Harry walked slowly, enjoying the night air and unchanged scenery. He walked until he reached the Quidditch stadium. Throwing his arms up, he lifted himself off the ground and crossed his legs. Breathing in the night he let his eyes fall closed.

He felt the energy pick up around him, the current in the air zinging through him. Sitting, with his legs crossed and his arms on his thighs, he kept this thoughts calm and his body a foot above the ground. Images floated through his mind, various animals set to entice, and Harry shook them off. He wasn't changing tonight. All he was going to do as he sat in the air was relax.

It was later, he didn't know how much later, that he turned his mind to his dorm mates, entering their dreams, one by one. It was invasive and rude, broke a million laws, but Harry let the exercise calm him. James was first and Harry grinned as he realized what his father was dreaming about. His father was definitely looking forward to having a family of his own. Remus was next, and Harry struggled briefly through his own mental barriers, that he assumed were from the Werewolf in Remus. Harry watched the images in the werewolf's mind, laughing to himself when he realized six times out of ten, Hermione was in there somewhere. Maybe he _should_ let James work on getting them together.

When he came to Sirius' mind a blush burned up his face. Of course Sirius would… Harry blushed as he watched the dream. It was enticing to just stay there and watch it play out… but Harry would never be able to look the older boy in the face again if he did. So removing himself from the dream… and oh did that take a lot of effort, Harry forced his way into the back of Sirius' mind, taking care to bury the memory of James and Halloween even deeper. Drifting his way out of Sirius mind he came back to himself.

Straightening his body out he lowered himself to the ground and turned to walk back to the school. He almost didn't see the shadow even as he walked towards it. Severus Snape stopped a foot in front of Harry, and the Gryffindor grinned.

"I hope you don't get caught," Harry nodded to his would-be Professor. Walking past him Harry didn't expect a response, so when Snape called out his name, he turned in confusion.

"What you said, to Potter earlier… you actually meant it, didn't you?"

Harry paused, studying the Slytherin in front of him. He was dressed in his black robes, which lead Harry to believe he had never gone to bed. He looked tired to, and the tugging on his left sleeve… _He was already marked_, Harry realized sadly.

"Yes, I meant it, I believe it."

Snape looked away, glancing towards the castle. "What if it's already too late?"

"Everyone deserves a second chance," Harry spoke, conviction lacing his voice. "But if you keep pushing away the people who want to help you, you're only hurting yourself." Harry raised his emerald eyes to meet Snape's black ones. "And whoever you get killed because of the choices you make."

Snape looked away again, and Harry could have sworn he saw guilt fly over the Slytherin's face. But, Severus Snape, here or twenty years from now, had amazing masks. Harry started walking again, heading back for the school. And then he was turning, facing Snape, who had his back to Harry. "You know," Harry spoke conversationally. "I've found talking to the Headmaster clears up a lot of issues." And then Harry was walking back to the school.

When he was sure Snape could no longer see him, Harry floated into the air, higher and higher, until he was level with porch he had left earlier. Locking the window behind him, Harry changed his clothes and fell asleep quickly.

… _TBC …_

_Reviews - __zxcvbnm - where exactly did you hear that James has hazel eyes? Not that is really matters, because in this fic, he had blue eyes. Thanks for reviewing._

_Rambles - So, I just got a job, full time, and come September, I'll be going to school full time as well. That will leave me with very little time to write. I'm sorry guys. But think, I am almost finished chapter 20, so even with my very limited time to write, you'll still get updates semi-regularly for a while. My only day's off till September are Tuesdays and Wensday's, so your best bet is to look for updates on those days. Ok, I need to warn you that I'm really obsessed with My Chemical Romance as of late. It's not even funny. I'm just warning you because there will by MCR references in a couple of chapters. Well, this is the end of this chapter… REVIEWS!!!! pouts cutely Pweassssseeee?_

_Oh, and to everyone who is adding my story to their favoritres, and alerts, thank you so much, but come one guys, REVIEW!!!! … I'm a review whore, always have been… I love them :D_

_Right, because I'll probably forget if I don't add it now... I've been thinking of where to take this story, and the plotline that's coming to my head some people might argue with. If anyone has a problem with a blond (who wont be blond), and ex-con and a werewolf professor dropping in latter in the story, (not at the same time) you need to let me know. If enough people have a serious problem, I'll rethink the story again... This is just an idea, I'm not promising anything, nor am I swearing against it. I'm just curious how people would react if I took the story down that angle as well. _

_Well, I can't think of much else... besides complaining about chapters 17 - 21 and how they're not cooperating. ARG!!!! ... It's really starting to piss me off..._

_Luv ya'll _

_Lady Starlight :D_


	16. Chapter 16

_Rambles – Have you ever been woken up, but not wake up entirely? I once had a conversation with my mother about taking her to the doctors, and when I got up two hours later, I could have sworn I'd dreamt the entire thing. Turns out I hadn't._

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Sixteen.**

Sunday was meant for relaxing, as far as Sirius Black was concerned, unless he was supposed to be playing Quidditch. But as it was, there was no Quidditch match or practice lined up for that day. So when the other Marauders woke early, apparently having forgotten to do their homework, Sirius had thrown his pillow at them before falling back asleep. When he woke up a while later and still felt tired he glanced to Harry's bed and realized the boy was still asleep himself. Not thinking through the fog covering his mind, Sirius climbed out of his bed and into Harry's. Wrapping an arm around the smaller boy's waist he felt his body give out and let himself succumb to the warmth of sleep.

When Harry finally woke, it took him a moment to realize there was an arm wrapped around him, let alone his pillow was breathing. "Sirius?" He murmured, peaking through one eye. How the hell had the dog gotten into his bed? More appropriately, when? He certainly hadn't been there when Harry had gone to sleep.

Cuddling back into the warmth that was Sirius, let out a contented sigh. If he was asleep then he wouldn't realize that James had just entered the dorm room looking for them.

"Harry?" James whispered, before peaking through Harry's curtains. When his eyes meet Harry's emerald ones, the older Potter grinned. It faltered slightly when he saw Sirius, but when he raised his eyes back to Harry, he was smiling. "I'm sorry about him, he's such an idiot sometimes."

"It's alright," Harry admitted quietly and James laughed.

"Yeah, I'll bet, he's kissing you in public, _and_ sneaking into your bed at night." James waggled his brows suspiciously, a lecherous grin on his face. Harry picked up his pillow (his real one that had ended up on the floor, not Sirius) and threw it at James.

"Get lost, _Daddy,_" Harry taunted and James backed away, laughing.

"Alright, alright, just make sure to wake up your boyfriend there. We need his help with the Potions homework."

James stood in front of the dorm door, hearing nothing but silence for a moment. Then Sirius woke up. There was a loud curse, and he fell onto the floor. James laughed at his disgruntled friend, who looked at him with a combination of embarrassment and horror. James shook his head. "Get dressed, mate, we need to pick your brain."

But Sirius was staring at him, and it was almost enough to cause James to whip the smirk off his face, to narrow his gaze and stare back. But he didn't because he knew what Sirius was looking for. He didn't need to search his best friend's stare to know what was going through his head. So James leaned back against the closed door, one foot kicked over the other, arms crossed over his chest, and a smile on his face.

Sirius climbed to his feet, walking towards James, while Harry stared at the two from his bed. Harry watched as Sirius neared and James stood straighter and opened his arms. Confusion swamped him as he watched his Sirius and James hug.

"You're an idiot sometimes," James whispered softly. "But I love you anyway." The two stepped away from each other, still smiling. Until James ruined the moment and reached up to ruffle Sirius' hair, "Go get dressed you goofy dog, I want to talk to my son."

Sirius just laughed, collecting his clothes while he said something about a stuck-up stag.

Once Sirius left Harry turned his gaze to James, who walked over, a smile on his face. "So, sonny boy," James grinned and jumped onto the bed. "How's my best mate been treating you?"

Harry blinked once and shoved James off his bed. The Marauder complained loudly and Harry sneered at him. "Your face was scaring me."

"That says something then, doesn't it, as it's your face as well."

"Oh, no, mine's much more attractive. Trust me."

"Egotistical little thing aren't you, _Son_?"

"Take a look in any mirrors lately, _Dad_?"

The two Potters snickered together, grinning at each other. And Harry felt a longing for something he could never have, for a chance that would never be given to him. Shaking himself out of his sudden upsetting thoughts, Harry glanced towards the bathroom.

"You might want to go back down to the Common Room," Harry told James with a solemn face and the older boy blinked at him.

"Why?"

Harry smirked. _He just had to ask._ "Because I'm about to go and molest your best mate in the bathroom."

"Oh, well," was all James said before he stood up and walked to door. Before leaving he turned back around and grinned cheekily. "Have fun with that." And he closed the door before Harry could retaliate.

Shaking his head to suppress his laughter Harry strolled into the bathroom and backed Sirius up against a wall. Not that the boy was complaining much, or you know, at all. Sirius dropped the shirt he had been in the middle of putting on, preferring to have his hands on Harry.

OoOoO

"I wish they'd just hurry up," James scowled, glaring darkly. Really, he didn't mind _them_ it was just that he wanted to get this bloody potions work over with.

When Sirius and Harry finally made their way down to the others, both looked far too pleased with themselves, and each other. Lily and Hermione glanced at each other, snickering under their breaths, while Remus snorted and James shook his head. Peter just looked on with annoyance, working on his Divination homework.

As Sirius sat down, pulling Harry with him, everyone else opened their potions texts and Sirius scanned his quickly before nodding. "Right," he started and grinned as his fingers laced with Harry's under the table.

Sirius spent the next thirty minutes explaining the finer points of the Dreamless Sleep Potion. Something that Harry already knew inside and out because Snape had insisted on quizzing him ruthlessly on it before he would let Harry take the potion. So Harry sat in relative silence as he listened to Sirius talk. He had such a smooth voice. Always would, Harry thought. It was something the years to come wouldn't be able to take away from the man.

Then the group disbursed and they all headed down to the Great Hall for lunch. Or, in Sirius and Harry's case, breakfast, because they had been too busy sleeping to eat. Which was strange, if you thought about it, because Sirius loved his food so very much.

Hermione watched her friends walk in front of them before she turned to the werewolf who was walking at her side. "Remus," she spoke quietly, knowing he could hear her. "I was wondering if you'd be willing to help me with the Defence homework."

Remus glanced at her before looking to Harry, who was better than both of them at that class. Remus glanced back at Hermione, who smiled at him. And he blushed. "Sure," he whispered.

"Great." Hermione grinned. "How about we meet in the library after dinner?"

"Sure," he said again, glancing at Harry. "That sounds fine."

"Good," Hermione grinned and they both looked away, blushing.

OoOoo

"Shhh!" James hissed, glaring behind him at Harry and Sirius. The three black-haired males peeked over the tops of the books to spy the table they were looking for. "There they are."

"Why didn't we just bring the invisibility cloak?" Harry groaned glaring at James.

"Because there's no fun in that," James argued back, pressed up against the bookshelf as he looked around the corner.

"He spent the summer watching James Bond movies," Sirius whispered to Harry and the young hero nodded in understanding.

Madam Pince turned to look at them suspiciously, and James grabbed the first book he could and pretended to be reading it. Harry took it out of his hands had put it back on the shelf when the librarian looked away from them. James crouched down, crawling around the bookshelf and hiding behind a trolley of books.

"Did you drug him or something?" Harry whispered to Sirius and the soft laughter in his ear was Sirius' response. James waved them down and the couple complied, dropping to the ground and hiding beside James.

"Aren't they cute?" James teased, a smile on his face.

Hermione and Remus were sitting at a secluded table, their Defence books on the table and their heads bent together over them. They couldn't hear what was being said, but they saw Hermione laugh and Remus blush and James cooed again.

Harry sighed, and then Hermione's eyes caught his. And they narrowed. Beside him Sirius gulped, his own eyes going wide. "James, Prongs, we need to retreat." Harry winked at Hermione, as he and Sirius hurried away, dragging James with them.

"Well, boo," the Marauder whined as Sirius pulled him out of the library.

The hallways were relatively empty and the three of them walked back to Gryffindor, enjoying the lack of students. "Hey, Harry," James spoke a few moments after leaving the library. "Did we ever give you a nickname, you know, for your Animagus?"

"Yes," Harry admitted. "I finally got pissed at all the Mini-Prongs jokes and told them to come up with something else."

"So, you're a stag?" James asked, a smile bright on his face.

"I can be," Harry said with a shrug. "I can be pretty much whatever I want."

"You don't have one set form?" Sirius gaped, eyes wide and mouth open. Harry reached over, closed his jaw and nodded in consent. "Wow. So, what do we call you then?"

Harry paused as he thought of the password to his and Hermione's Common Room. "Paladin."

Sirius only blinked while James nodded. "Adventurous knight, huh? What about Hermione?"

"Tsubasa, it means Wings in Japanese. For the longest time it was her favorite word, so when we realized she was a giant bird, well, it stuck."

James smiled to himself before glancing down the hallway. "You know what," he said as he took both Sirius' and Harry's hands, "let's go run around in the forest." And the three of them set off, laughing.

OoOoO

Lily was the first person she saw when Hermione entered her dorm room. The redhead was grinning wickedly and sitting on Hermione's bed. "Soo?" she urged. "Spill all."

"Why would I do that?" Hermione asked as she placed her book bag on the ground.

"You're not used to having girlfriends, are you?" Lily asked before reaching up and pulling Hermione onto the bed. "That's ok, I'm not either. But I've listened enough to Ashley, Matilda and Alice's conversations to know that after a date, you're supposed to spill your guts."

"Hell, yes," Ashley says as she walks in. "Tell all."

"There's nothing to tell," Hermione avoided. Lily and Ashley looked at each other and snickered.

"You don't actually expect us to believe that, do you?" Lily asked.

"Hun, we've seen the two of you together. There is so something there."

Hermione blushed and glanced away. The other two females looked at each other and smirked. "He asked you out, didn't he?"

Hermione glanced up at them, a smile on her face. "Maybe," Hermione said and the other two squealed. "But here's the deal, I need help keeping James, Sirius and Harry away."

"Oh?" Lily asked, raising an eyebrow. Hermione let out a snort of disgust.

"They were spying on us earlier, and I know, left to their own devices, they'll do it again."

Lily grinned at Hermione. "You don't have to worry about James, I'll keep him distracted."

"I'll bet you will," Ashley snorted and received a glare.

"I'll have you know, we haven't done anything like that, so get your nasty mind out of the filthy gutter!"

Ashley gaped at her. "You're kidding, right? You've been dating for like six months!"

Lily smirked, "I know."

… _TBC …_

_Reviews – Ok, so a lot of people seemed excited about the idea of sending Sirius and the gang to the past, but there were a few who weren't impressed at all, and one imparticular who told me why. Thank you all for your suggestions and opinions on the matter. I'll probably know for sure by New Years (in the story) since that was when I planned to have the older Sirius 'accidently' send Draco to the past…_

_Rambles – Well, I struggled a bit with the Hermione/Remus-ness. It's not something that I usually right, so it was really strange to me. I hope you all are still enjoying this story. And too be a pain in the ass, if you have any ideas of what you'd like to see, feel free to tell me them… yes, I'm fishing for ideas… I need something big to happen, instead of all these minidrama's that last a few chapters before being tentitively resolved. Read, enjoy, review. Thanks._

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	17. Chapter 17

_Rambles - KKK, I'm reuploading these. Because I think I screwed up and didn't post the chapters that cckiemig sent me. Shit._

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Seventeen. **

The first thing Harry noticed when he woke up was the weather. It was sunny, clear and blue. Jumping out of his bed he raced for the bathroom, a smile bright on his face. Washing up quickly, he pulled on his clothes and then raced around to wake up the Marauders. James took one look at his wildly happy son and let the energy wash over him.

"Would you look at that sky?" James cheered, shouting his praises to whoever was listening.

Sirius bounced beside them, laughing as he stared at the clear blue sky. "Man, we are so going to win this thing!"

"Hell, yes!"

Remus and Peter took one look at the overly excited trio, and groaned.

"That better have been your undying support, Moony, mate," Sirius warned.

"Go Gryffindor," Remus deadpanned.

"Waaahhooooo!" James cheered again, jumping on Sirius' back. "We're going to destroy them!"

When Remus was finally able to coerce the Quidditch players into their clothes and out of the dorm, he felt a headache brewing. Unfortunately, pushing them down a flight of stairs was not a good idea, because they would never talk to him again if he made them miss their match. As they reached the landing before the Fat Lady the girls caught up with them.

Remus glanced at Hermione and smiled. Their date the weekend before had been… ok. Somehow she had managed to keep James, and Sirius and Harry from following them around and they had gone about the day together. Merlin, he had been nervous. But catching her smile, he grinned back and together, with Lily's help, they ushered the three ecstatic boys down to the Gryffindor table for breakfast.

Tension bristled through the Great Hall as the Slytherin Team strolled to their table. Glares were exchanged and the pleasant atmosphere became dark with apprehension. James played with his food more than he actually ate, and Sirius' fingers tapped repeatedly on the table's surface, a sure sign that he wasn't as cocky as he acted.

Harry on the other hand looked at them both with amusement. He could feel the tension rolling off of them and he refused to let himself drown in it. Placing a hand on top of Sirius' he squeezed the man's fingers to get them to stop. "Relax," he hissed. "Both of you."

James and Sirius turned to look at him, confused at his smiling face. "You forget," his voice was so soft that only the three of them knew what he was saying. "Not one of their brooms," Harry nodded to the Slytherins, "has a chance in hell of competing with any of mine. You don't need to worry about someone beating me to the Snitch. Breathe, guys."

"It's not even the finals yet," Remus muttered. The black-haired Marauders glared at their werewolf friend. "Best of luck, although I doubt you'll need it."

They made their way to the changing rooms, picking up their brooms as they went. After changing James gave a quick inspirational speech that was much cleverer than any Oliver Wood ever gave, and ushered his team out onto the pitch.

Madam Hooch eyed the two teams suspiciously before ordering the captains to shake hands. Harry didn't know who looked more annoyed, James or the Slytherin captain. "Mount your brooms!" Madam Hooch shouted and fourteen players did so.

Once the whistle was blown and the balls were released, Harry watched his father with a smile. Everyone had always compared his talent to that of James Potter, and it thrilled Harry to actually see proof of their claims. Harry looped around the field lazily, enjoying the control he held over the Lightning.

"And James Potter with the Quaffle," the commentator, who had to be in his sixth year, spoke over the cheers. "Potter passes to Jess Tolkien, and doesn't she look fine as she tossed the Quaffle to Sammy Winchester. Potter's pulled one hell of a team together this year, with a mixture of old talent and new. And the Quaffle is still in Gryffindor's possession, down the field they go and Winchester passes back to Potter, and here comes Slytherin's Jenkins ready to intercept. Potter tosses the Quaffle; what was he thinking? No one's in tha - well, Tolkien catches the ball and scores, much to Jenkins' irritation."

Harry listened to the commentary, an amused smile on his face. He kind of reminded Harry a lot of Lee Jordan when he was still commentating the matches. Sirius flew by him, a smirk on his face, as he attacked a Bludger.

"And that was Gryffindor's Sirius Black, who beat that Bludger back at the Slytherins."

Harry listened to the cheers with mild amusement as he circled the field, one eye on the game and the other looking for the Snitch. The some of the girls (and guys) in the stand started chanting "Sirius" much to Harry's amusement. Raising an eyebrow at his boyfriend (?), Harry swooped down and under the players before shooting back up.

"Now, ladies (and gents), that's enough of that. Black's taken by Gryffindor's talented new Seeker, Harry Granger, who might have just seen the Snitch…. Or he could be driving Slytherin's Seeker, Tyler, insane. Granger's got some natural talent in this game and he immediately beat out the other potential Seekers during tryouts."

The crowd cheered and Harry looped around again. Gryffindor was up eighty to twenty, but it looked like Slytherin was determined to even the score. It didn't matter. Harry glanced at Tyler, who was furiously searching for the little gold ball.

In the stands Hermione stood between Remus and Lily, watching the match eagerly. While she might not be a huge fan of the game, she had never purposefully missed one of Harry's matches, and they both knew what that meant to him.

"He's showing off," Hermione muttered.

Remus glanced down at her, a curious smile on his face. The know-it-all blushed slightly. "He's just not interested in finding the Snitch yet. He wants to let this play out. See, he's diving, making Tyler follow, and yet, he is well aware that the Snitch is by the Gryffindor goalposts."

Remus smiled at her again, "How do you figure that?"

"Years, Remus, years of watching Harry play this game."

"Ohh! Be careful," Lily whispered as she watched Harry pull out of a dive. "It's why I hate watching these games, the players are so reckless."

Beside Lily, Peter watched on with annoyance. Across the stadium, he caught sight of MacNeil, standing between Snape and Malfoy. Right back into his old post, Peter thought jealously. How was it that some people could slide in and take over as if they had never not been there?

Harry eyed James as the Slytherins scored another goal. Gryffindor was still up eighty points, but James was starting to get tense again. _Alright,_ Harry thought. _Let's end this match_.

Circling the field again Harry glanced behind him at Tyler, who was going at a much slower pace. Obviously he didn't have Harry's talent for finding little gold flying balls, which would explain why he didn't notice it was a foot behind him and moving away fast. Harry dove down, before racing across the pitch. He kept his head forward, even if his eyes were following the fluttering ball. Tyler was trying to catch up, and Harry was almost tempted to reign in the power of his Lightning even more, before deciding against it. He shot up into the air, not hearing the gasps, or cheers, or commentary.

He took a sharp corner to avoid colliding with Sirius and continued heading into the air, Tyler still trying to catch up. Sirius took pity on the Slytherin Seeker and hit a Bludger in his direction, giving Tyler something else to focus on than his task of following Harry.

Harry's fist closed over the golden ball and he leveled himself and his broom. The cheers that went out drowned out any boos that the Slytherins would attempt to make. Harry pulled off his goggles, laughing as Sirius flew up beside him, grabbed Harry's uniform, and pulled the hero in for a kiss. "You're bloody brilliant," he said as he backed off and let James through.

"Like I said, girls, he's taken," the Commentator said.

"I'd kiss you myself, but that'd be kind of weird!" James wrapped his arms around Harry quickly before the three lowered themselves to the ground and the Gryffindors who were standing there already.

Hermione launched herself at Harry, hugging him tightly before backing away and wrinkling her nose in disgust. Lily leaned up, kissing his cheek. "Congratulations, Harry," she said before turning her attention to her boyfriend. She leaned up, kissing him quickly and making sure not to touch him.

"You three are all sweaty, go shower." Remus advised, laughing at Hermione's disgusted claim that she had to shower again as well.

Even as Harry showered in the changing rooms, the energy was still flying through his system. He heard his teammates call out their good-byes. Jess, Sammy, Travis (the keeper), James, and Daniel (the other beater) left one at a time as Harry tried to chill the buzzing under his skin. The adrenaline was still pumping as he pulled on his trousers. He felt, rather then heard or saw, the figure step behind him, turn him around and shove him up against the lockers. Lips attacked his, hungry and fast.

"Oh, God," Harry groaned and Sirius chuckled deeply against his lips.

"Not quite," before he resumed kissing Harry.

Harry's head felt light, floaty, as he continued to kiss Sirius back. The two ground against each other with the energy of two seventeen-year-old males who had just won their game. They tangled together and when they finally separated Harry buried his face in Sirius' neck, chuckling slightly.

"What's up?" Sirius asked and Harry laughed again.

"The buzzing's gone," he admitted and Sirius looked at him curiously, taking in Harry's flushed face and bruised lips. "The adrenaline…congratulations, Sirius." Harry dropped a kiss on Sirius' neck before eyeing said body part apprehensively.

Sirius' eyes narrowed, "What is it, Harry?"

"Nothing," the other replied, wincing when Sirius strutted to a mirror and pulled at the collar of his shirt.

"Harry!" Sirius shouted, turning to stare at his boyfriend. _Was that the right word for it?_ Sirius thought distractedly, before looking back at his neck. Yeah, boyfriend would work. "I will get you back for that, I promise, Potter!"

"Sorry," Harry whined prettily, throwing on a puppy look for good effect. He wrapped an arm around Sirius and leaned up to lick at the bruise on his neck, before escaping to clean himself up.

Sirius groaned, tossed Harry a glare and muttered the concealment charm. He watched as the bruise faded, but didn't disappear entirely.

Pulling on his clean clothes he watched Harry slip into a T-shirt. "Harry, do you want to go into Muggle London later? Maybe see a movie or something?"

Harry beamed up at him, his face turning slightly red as he caught sight of Sirius' neck. "Sure," he said. "Sounds great."

OoOoO

They ate lunch with their friends, boasting about the game while Hermione cursed Harry and his reckless behavior. The commentator, a Ravenclaw Sixth year named Jason Watson strolled up to them, high-fiving Sirius and James.

"Congratulations, Harry," He said. "It was a great enjoyment to watch you drag Tyler in circles."

"It was a blast leading him in circles."

"Well, next match is Ravenclaw vs. Slytherin. If we trounce them, we're playing Gryffindor in the Finals."

"I hope you win, then," Harry said politely.

"Thank you, so do I. Ravenclaw hasn't won the Quidditch Cup in ten years. Not since my eldest sister left Hogwarts. She's moved out now, married and expecting a son. We can only hope that he'll get her Quidditch genes."

They talked for a few more minutes before Jason walked off, eager to talk to others. Lunch dragged on with the celebrations. Later in the afternoon Harry found himself up in the dorm room, searching for clothes to wear. He hissed out expletives under his breath before eyeing his leather coat. Tossing it on his bed he pulled out a pair of tight-fitting trousers and a dark red shirt, both of which Tonks had given him for his birthday, along with other clothes that she deemed appropriate for the Savoir of the Wizarding World. Most of them Harry would never wear as she had gotten his size too small. When he had mentioned that however, Tonks merely winked and went back to eating her breakfast.

Harry changed his clothing before heading into the bathroom. He spiked his hair quickly, noticing that it was starting to get longer. That meant the growth-stunting spell was wearing off, so Harry planned to let it wear off completely before he went back to get it cut again. Honestly, he liked it short like this. It was much easier to handle and manipulate. Squeezing out some of the blue hair gel the stylist had insisted on, Harry rubbed his fingers together and then ran his hands through his hair. Washing his hands clean of the blue dye, Harry grinned at his hair.

As he strolled out of the bathroom, Sirius was strutting in, smirk on his face and humor in his eyes. He paused a second in the doorway to study Harry, then closed the bathroom door behind him. Harry had slipped on his coat and was lacing up his sneakers when Sirius strutted out of the bathroom again.

"Ready, Babe?" Sirius asked, and Harry nodded, picking up his Invisibility cloak, and the map.

The two of them walked out of the Common Room, not paying any obvious attention to the lustful stares and catcalls that went up as they passed. It was still early; dinner would be in an hour. They walked to the witch on the third floor and glanced at the map, before opening the passage. Leaving the cloak in the passage they hurried down to the end to it, and Apparated into London.

Dinner was fine, though Harry would never understand Sirius' obsession with steak, and they walked to the theater holding hands. After buying their tickets and popcorn they found a seat in the back of the theater and waited for the film to start.

Though, honestly, neither remembered the title of the film, let alone what it was about. And Sirius repaid Harry for the hickey. Big time.


	18. Chapter 18

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Eighteen.**

It was nearing the end of November when Dumbledore announced that Hogwarts would be holding a Christmas Dance. And that Lily and James were in charge of it, as they were the Head Students. Their friends looked at them in bafflement, unable to believe that the two managed to hide something like that.

"All students are invited of course," Dumbledore continued. "First to Third years must be in bed by ten, and fourth to seventh… sometime before morning. I suggest you find a date. And if you have any suggestions for music, kindly submit your ideas to the head students. This event will take place one week before your last Friday." Dumbledore watched his students with a smile. The twinkle in his eyes put Harry on edge.

"And to make this even more memorable, we're holding it the Muggle way. Which means, Muggle clothing." Albus watched the mixed reactions of his students, the Slytherin's disgust, the amusement, the cluelessness and confusion. And he smiled again. "I hope you will all have time to find some appropriate Muggle clothing to wear."

Excitement bubbled amongst the students for the remainder of the day and Harry watched in mild fascination as plans were echoed in every corner of the school. Purebloods were asking their half-blood or Muggleborn friends for advice on what to wear. Students got their schedules together to see when they could go into Hogsmeade to hunt up appropriate clothing. Harry also saw a few girls drag out those awful fashion rags that Lavender, Parvati and Padma were constantly reading.

And wouldn't you know it, the moment they stepped in to the common room, Matilda Brown was dragging Hermione and Lily over to a table where she had a stack of them. Alice Prewett was already there, and Ashley Street appeared to be tied to her seat. Lily and Hermione glanced back at the boys desperately. The Marauders and Harry shook their collective heads and backed up a step, earning dark glares.

Out of all the students in the school, the senior Slytherins appeared to be the only ones unimpressed with the prospect of the upcoming dance. However, knowing _who_ made up the Senior Slytherins, that really didn't surprise Harry. If they had been all gung-ho about the idea and as eager as the other houses appeared to be, then Harry probably would have had a heart attack on the spot, and he was only seventeen years old.

What did surprise Harry, though, were the Witches at school. They kept winking at him, talking to him and flirting with him. Sure some of them were really pretty, and if it hadn't been for Sirius he might have been interested in one of them, but as it stood… well… "They do know I'm seeing Sirius, right?" Harry asked his friends much later, almost a week after the announcement had been made.

"Of course they do," James agreed. "But it's not going to stop them from trying. They don't actually think that you would go to the dance with Sirius."

"Why… why wouldn't I?" Harry blinked in confusion, staring at his seventeen-year-old father.

"Harry, I really hope I don't need to inform you that you and Sirius are both in fact, male?"

"Of course not, jeez, Prongs, you make me sound stupid." Harry paused before glancing up. "Is that actually a problem here?"

"No," Remus intervened. "It just doesn't happen often, that's all."

Harry nodded, thinking back. Remus would be right. He had been to three such school dances, and several After-Voldie parties, and it was rare. Though for Halloween in Sixth year Seamus and Dean had gone 'together' and danced and everything. That, however, had been on a dare given to them by Neville of all people. The school was still talking about it come Christmas.

"Alright," Harry nodded his head, smirking at James. "If it's such a problem… I won't go with Sirius."

"No, that's not necessary," James interrupted, not liking the look on Harry's face.

"I'll take Lily instead." Harry said it so smoothly, and with a straight face, that it took James a minute to realize just _what_ Harry had decided.

"WHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTT!!!!" James shouted, drawing glares from everyone in the common room. Hermione, Lily and Sirius glanced their way as they walked in. They looked at each other and shrugged before walking up.

"You can't!" James shouted. "I so won't let you!!!"

"What can't he do?" Lily asked and James glared at Harry, who was smirking.

"Lily, darling, would you go to the dance with me?" Harry asked and Lily eyed him suspiciously. She turned her glance to James, who was shaking wildly, repeatedly mouthing 'no' and glaring at Harry. Lily turned back to Harry, and kissed his cheek.

"Of course, love, all you had to do was ask."

James made this sound, between a dying cat and nails on a chalkboard. Lily and Harry looked at each other, their emerald eyes met, and they burst into laughter. Everyone looked on, amused (except for James) to see mother and son laughing their heads off.

"You have a mean streak in you, Harry," Lily commented and Harry grinned widely.

"I always wondered where I got it from," He agreed and spared James a pitying glance. "Ohh, the poor boy is heartbroken. I'm sorry, Lily, but I just can't stand seeing him like that." He looked up at Lily. "I suppose you're going to have to go with him."

Lily sighed, shaking her head in mock-disappointment. "I suppose you're right. If only so he'll stop moping."

"I'm glad you understand," Harry replied solemnly. "It wouldn't do to have him walking around with a broken heart."

James straightened himself and returned to the seat he had abandoned during his little 'freak out.' He looked calm, polite and there was no trace of any exaggerated emotion on his face. Lily just laughed when James pulled her into his lap, glaring possessively.

Sirius however was still glaring at Lily with fake-anger. He slid into the seat on the couch beside Harry and dragged the smaller boy into his arms. "You're lucky I can take a joke," he growled darkly, but they all saw the amusement hidden in his eyes. "Otherwise I'd have to hex you into next year."

"Oh!" Harry piped up, his head on Sirius' shoulder. "Like you did to that Ravenclaw sixth year last night?"

Sirius scowled and glared down at Harry. It didn't have the wanted effect however, as the Boy-Who-Lived just leant up and kissed the scowl away. "You're sweet," he stated as he rubbed the top of his head against Sirius' cheek, his fingers playing with the gold chain around Sirius' neck. Something he had found a couple weeks ago and been fascinated with ever since. It was a thing gold chain, with a delicate 'P' hanging off of it. All Harry knew was that James had given it to Sirius for his fifteenth birthday, and he never _ever_ took it off.

"Uggh," James groaned, glaring at them. "Get a room," he growled and instantly regretted it as Harry smirked at him.

"We've got one," Harry reminded his father, and then laughed at the shudder. Sirius just grinned over Harry's head.

Lily smiled at the couple. "Do you know what you're wearing yet?" She asked the group in general.

Hermione sighed, pausing to glare at Matilda. "Yes, I have something. The Headmaster never told us if the dance was formal, just that is was Muggle clothing."

"Semi-formal is the safest way to go," Harry admitted.

"What are _you_ wearing?" Hermione asked suspiciously. "That is, if you know?"

Harry grinned wickedly. "Do you remember Fred and George's birthday present?" Everyone watched as Hermione blushed, stuttered, and gaped. Harry smirked. "Yeah, I'm not wearing that." Hermione leaned over Remus and smacked Harry.

"You're such a jerk."

"What is this birthday present that you speak of?" Sirius asked curiously and Harry grinned once more.

"You saw my coat." Sirius' happy murmur was all the response they got. "I got a whole outfit."

Sirius' eyes flew open, and he stared at Harry. "Merlin," he whispered, envisioning his boyfriend head to toe in leather. Harry laughed as he met the kiss with equal fever. Both of them paused and slid away from each other when they realized they had an audience.

"So," Harry coughed. "Twenty three days till Christmas. Who's done shopping?"

The group exchanged guilty looks. They might have started in November, but they in no way finished. Harry lay his head on Sirius' shoulder. All he still had to get was something for his sister and Sirius.

OoOoO

"Hey, Remus," Harry called out as they changed into their night clothes.

"What is it Harry?" Remus asked.

"Have you thought about asking Mione to the dance?" With his back to the werewolf, Harry didn't see the blush or nervous twitch. "I know you went on that date, but…"

"Try dates," Sirius spoke up.

"Sirius!" James shouted.

"James!" Remus growled.

"Remus!" Harry shifted his body and glared at the wolf. "Have you been going out with my sister? And why the hell was I not aware of this?"

"Aww, well, see…" Remus backed away from the glaring boy.

"_You're an over protective ass, leave him alone."_

Harry continued to glare, despite Hermione's words in his head. "You know, you could have told me," he spoke both aloud and in his head.

There were apologies, both mental and verbal; Harry glared at Remus again, before backing down. He blocked the open connection with Hermione, before raising an eyebrow at Remus. "Well? Are you going to ask her?"

Remus seemed to be at a loss for words. He glanced at Harry, then at Sirius and James, unsure how he was expected to answer. Harry sighed, shook his head. "It's an easy question, Remus, forget that I'm her brother-"

Remus was about to interrupt Harry, telling him that he (Harry) wasn't actually Hermione's brother anyway, when Peter walked in from the bathroom.

"And answer the question."

Remus muttered something, blushing, and Harry continued to stare at him. "Alright, here's the thing, I love Hermione, I think she's the greatest Witch in the world, and if you break her heart, I'll break you into a million tiny wolfy pieces. That's a promise, Remus."

As the two stared off, James snickered not-so-quietly. "You're the reason she doesn't date much at home, huh?" he asked and Harry smirked.

"Hell, yes, I'm the reason. Trust me; teenage boys aren't good enough for my sister."

"But they're good enough for you?" James asked with a playful grin.

"Well," Harry glanced at Sirius, a smile on his face. "Some of them, anyway."

James watched them. He saw his best friend's arm around his son, and listened to the two of them flirt. He had caught them making out a few times over the last month, but usually they were discreet about it. Something that he was thankful for because, really, he didn't need the mental image. He had watched them go from curious to interested to smitten. He had watched them tumble head over heels into love, and he didn't know if they were even aware of it. It felt that like it had happened so quickly, but in reality, it had been a couple of months.

_They're perfect for each other_, James thought as he watched Sirius and Harry tease Remus. Harry grounded Sirius, but at the same time, Sirius brought out the humor in Harry. And, oh, wasn't he the romantic? James sighed to himself and dropped into his bed.

He heard the rustling of his dorm mates crawling into their beds before someone flicked the lights off. As the soft snores started, telling James that his friends were asleep, James still couldn't turn his thoughts off. Sitting up in his bed he scrubbed at his eyes and tiptoed his way to the window before climbing out.

It was relaxing out here with just the night to distract you. James watched the night sky and wondered if it was the same one that Harry would see twenty years from now. Sitting against the school he stared up at the stars, not realizing that he had fallen asleep.

Harry found him there, hours later. Standing in front of the sleeping Marauder, Harry shook his head and smiled. Waving his hand he levitated James into the air and floated him back to his bed. Turning his head to the night sky he knew that shortly the sun would start to rise. Walking back into the dorm room, Harry walked over to Sirius' bed, and shook the Marauder quickly.

Sirius grumbled in response to the intrusion and Harry placed a kiss on his neck, before whispering into his ear, "Come for a walk with me, Padfoot." Sirius opened one sapphire eye and glared at Harry.

"Is the sun even up yet?"

Harry laughed and held out a hand, "Come watch the sun rise with me, Padfoot," he whispered and the dog glared at him before sitting up and taking Harry's hand.

Only pausing to slip their coats on over their pajamas and lace up their sneakers the two left the castle. Fingers laced between them they strolled towards the lake. Settling down on the damp grass, Sirius leant up against a tree and Harry curled into his arms. The two stayed like that until the sun rose over the school grounds.

As Harry watched the multitude of colours that took over the sky, Sirius was watching his boyfriend's face. He watched the open expression, the peace. He saw the joy that shown through the gorgeous emerald eyes at the new day.

"Sirius," Harry whispered, breaking the peaceful solitude.

"Hmm?" Was his only reply as he let his fingers play with Harry's. His fingers ran up Harry's arms before moving down to link their fingers again. Harry's voice was quiet, barely a whisper as the sun concluded its morning light show.

"I think I'm in love with you."

… _TBC …_

_Reviews – Thank you so much everyone!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight :D_


	19. Chapter 19

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Nineteen.**

"_I think I'm in love with you."_

The words repeated, echoed, shouted and screamed inside his head. They soared through his blood and danced across his veins. They refused to be silenced, refused to be pushed away. They were spoken in the soft whispery voice that belonged to the innocent and knowing eyes.

Those words came from the small adorable boy in his arms.

The words stunned him

He'd head them before. From females infatuated with him, and males who wanted to shag him. They were pointless and hollow words that Sirius discredited upon hearing. He didn't believe the words, and a few hearts were probably temporarily broken in the process, but all in all, it was better that those words stayed locked away.

They were false words, empty and meaningless. They were said to get what you wanted and retracted the moment you had it. Sirius had more than enough experience with those words to know the angles around them. That was why he made sure to never use them.

Because unlike most of the people he knew, when Sirius used those words, he bloody meant it. To him those words were an oath, a pact that could never be broken. When he told someone he loved them, he was saying that he'd die for them. He'd travel to Hell and back to keep them safe.

_James got that_, Sirius thought idly, his fingers playing in Harry's hair. James had just smiled at Sirius that August, when the words had escaped him, before hugging his best friend. "I'd die for you too, Sirius," he responded and the two of them had rushed down stairs to harass the Potters' house elves.

Those words meant something to Sirius, and he just knew, instinctively, that they meant something to Harry as well. Oh, Merlin, that was a terrifying thought. His arms tightened around the smaller frame and Harry glanced up at Sirius, confusion flashing though his emerald eyes.

"Sirius?" he asked quietly, worrying his bottom lip. "Sirius… I…" Harry paused, shifting his legs so that he was straddling Sirius. He opened his mouth to speak, shook his head and frowned. Leaning foreword, he covered Sirius' mouth with his own before pulling back.

"I didn't say that to con a response out of you, Sirius. I just… I felt it, you know? And I wanted you to know that. I… I've never been in love with anyone. I've never even thought I was in love with anyone before. I don't have any experience with this. I've dated a total of two girls, didn't really like either of them. Made out with one of my best friends and liked that a hell of a lot more. I don't… I don't know what I'm doing, Sirius, so if I shouldn't have said that, you need to let me know so that we can both forget it. I'm babbling right now, but you look like you want to eat me and that only usually happens when there are giant snakes around, and I didn't really just compare you to Nagini, I swear." Harry paused, and let his fast words process through his brain. He blushed lightly and bit his lip again.

Sirius just smiled at him, and pulled him closer so that their lips touched. "I don't mind," he whispered, surprising himself with how true it was. He really wasn't bothered hearing it from Harry. "Harry, I…"

Harry shook his head, kissing Sirius once more. "Don't bother, Siri, you don't have to say anything. You seem to forget, I have a slight advantage here."

Sirius cocked an eyebrow and Harry grinned at him. "I know you better then you think I do."

Oh.

Right.

That.

Shit.

"Don't you dare," Harry's voice darkened and he glared at Sirius.

"What?"

"Don't you obsess about that again, Sirius. It's a fact, deal with it."

"I have…mostly," he whined at Harry's disbelieving look. "I'm just sometimes really freaking reminded of it."

"Yeah, I know." Harry nodded, still straddling Sirius, and rested his head on the other boy's shoulder.

"We should go inside," Sirius muttered, not really wanting to move.

"Probably," was Harry's reply. A few moments later the two stood up and walked back to the school, fingers twined.

OoOoO

Remus really had no idea what had woken him so early that morning. All he knew is that when he had woken up Sirius and Harry had been gone. Showering and getting ready for school, Remus picked up his book bag and snuck into the common room. He took a seat in front of the fire and pulled open his Charms text. Scanning through the pages he went over his homework once more and nodded when it all came back correct. Putting the parchment away he opened the book to scan the next chapter.

His fingers moved through the pages and he felt the change in texture and size. Pulling out the parchment that had been stuffed in the back of his Charms text, Remus frowned at it quizzically, before recognizing it as the parchment the Marauders had used when making that potion.

Huh.

Remus scanned the timeworn parchment and glanced up to the stairs that led to their dorm room. He'd have to ask James about it. All he remembered was making it, and James had claimed to have cleaned it up and put it away. And then Harry and Hermione had appeared and taken over their attention. He'd have to ask James what he'd done with it. See if they could figure out what it did. Maybe Hermione would be able to shed some light upon it.

Hermione…

Remus smiled as he thought of her. She really was a clever girl. Smart, and fun and pretty and he had long ago admitted to having a huge crush on her, at least to himself. Now he just had to get up the guts to ask her to the dance.

Remus was shaken from his daydream when Peter came into the common room. Remus eyed him briefly, before piping up, "You're up early, Peter," and watching the rat squeak.

"H-hi, Remus. I was… I was just going to… the library. For some extra studying." Peter's dull eyes flitted over Remus and the werewolf frowned.

"Alright, well, I'm always here if you need any help."

"Yes… yes, thank you." Peter rushed out of the common room, leaving behind a perplexed werewolf.

As Remus watched his friend take off, he couldn't help but think of Hermione's words regarding Peter. And he sort of didn't want to know what was going through his friend's head. He was kind of worried about what he'd find.

"_We're all a bunch of liars, tell me, baby, who do you want to be?"_

Remus glanced up at the female voice and smiled when Hermione walked up to him, school bag slung over her shoulder. She had an earbud in her ear, something he had come to recognize that meant she was listening to music. Hermione's head bopped slightly as she walked, a smile on her face.

"_Cuz we all want to party when the funeral ends." _

She usually hid her music player from the student body, but when it was just the Marauders she had fewer qualms. Probably because they knew what she was listening to wouldn't come out for a few decades. She pulled her thick hair away from her face and tied it tightly. "Hey, Remus," she grinned. Her hand dipped into her pocket and she pulled out a small circular device that was smaller than her palm. She clicked a button and shoved it back into her pocket, headphones as well.

"I didn't think anyone would be up," the girl smiled and they both glanced towards the stairs to see Lily climb up to the boys' dorm. "She wanted to see James. I think she had an epiphany before she woke me up."

Remus shifted to offer Hermione room on the couch and smiled at her when the girl sat down. "Charms work?" she asked, eyeing the book still in his hands.

"Just double--- well, quadruple-checking." Remus paused, glancing at Hermione again. "You don't… uh, you don't have a date for the Dance yet, do you?" Remus asked and smiled when Hermione's eyes lit up.

"Not yet… I was waiting for a certain… Marauder to ask…"

Remus flushed bright red as he tried to control his vocal cords. "Well, I see. I can go and get Sirius for you, if you insist, but I think Harry might have some problems with that." Hermione threw her head back and laughed, and when she calmed down, she eyed Remus suspiciously. Remus smiled at her. "Hermione, would you go to the Christmas Dance with me?"

"Yes, it's about time you asked. I'm one of those girls who like a little tradition." The two smiled at each other.

OoOoO

The sun was still rising as Lily woke up, a smile on her face. She stretched delicately and tried to control her singing as she showered. Dressing was fast and her eyes lingered on the photo of her and James when she was brushing her hair.

It had been taken last August, when Sirius had become obsessed with the camera her father had given her for her birthday. She had been yelling at James for something, when he had pulled her in and kissed her breathless. The picture had caught them coming up, smiling dreamily at each other. Lily had taken one look and realized she was in fact completely in love with James Potter. Merlin, had that been a shock to the system.

She smiled at the picture, fingers replacing the brush as they ran through her straight fire-red hair. Her eyes drifted around her room and she grinned at the sleeping Hermione. She hadn't expected to find such a good friend in the girl. Pulling a trick from the Marauders, she summoned several pillows to wake Hermione.

The girl grumbled in her sleep, opening her eyes to glare at Lily, who just laughed. "It's such a nice morning, Mione, you should get up and enjoy it."

Hermione picked up her clothes and walked towards their bathroom. She glanced back at Lily and flicked her own wand, sending the pillows to attack their original sender. Lily just laughed until the assault stopped and the pillows returned to their original places.

Her eyes drifted to the picture again as she re-brushed her hair. James would have been proud of her, she thought inwardly. Some of the things she'd picked up from him over the past eight months would horrify her sister… well, _she_ horrified her sister, so to say it would horrify her parents would be much more accurate. After the horror and shock wore off, they'd be highly amused.

_James... _Lily smiled at she thought off him. If someone had told her a year ago, that she would fall head over heels in love with James Potter, Marauder extraordinaire, she would have demanded to know what they were taking, and where she could get some. But now… a smile lingered again. She was completely in love with him and she wasn't planning on having that change any time soon.

Hermione walked out of the bathroom, dressed and ready for the day, and eyed Lily curiously. The redhead just beamed at her friend. "I'm going to wake James," was the announcement. Hermione nodded, picking up her school bag and pulling out her MP3 player. Flipping through her playlist, she settled on a song and followed Lily out of their dorm with one head phone in.

Lily watched Hermione walk towards Remus and walked up to the boys' dorm. A quick glance verified that no one was around and she flung open James' bed curtains. James reacted on instinct, used to the Marauders' games. He pulled Lily down and flipped over so that Lily's back was on the bed and James on top of her. He blinked a few times, staring down at her.

"Not who I thought it was," he said with a grin. "But a much prettier face to wake up to." He flipped them so that they were on their sides, then placed a quick kiss on her lips and nuzzled her neck. "Have I told you," he spoke seriously when he pulled back. "That I love you?"

Lily felt blood rush to her face as she grinned at him. "No, not since we started dating." She leaned towards him and kissed him herself. "But then, neither have I. I love you, James Potter, so much you have no idea."

James smiled at her, thinking of their soon-to-be son. "I think I do," he admitted and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer and leaning back on his bed. "You're it for me, Lils, always have been."

"I think I'm starting to realize that."

It was later when Lily finally forced James out of bed, despite his complaining. They walked into the common room with James' arm around her waist and her head on his shoulder. They joined Remus and Hermione, sitting across from them as a few of the early risers settled in various places around the common room.

It was only moments later that the common room door opened and James caught sight of Harry and Sirius walking in, still in their pajamas and coats. They weren't talking, but they both had smiles on their faces.

James watched as Harry glanced up, his eyes instantly settling on Hermione, and he winked. She grinned at him and shook her head, waving him away as she glanced at her music player, a playful grin on her face.

"Baby," she called out, "Who do you want to be?"

Harry threw his head back and laughed, turning in Sirius' embrace to grin at Hermione.

"Cuz it's tragic with a capital T."

"Cuz we're all a bunch of animals."

"Who never paid attention in school."

"Tell me all about your problems."

"I was killing before killing was cool."

"You're so cool, you're so cool."

Brother and sister laughed at their friends' confused stares. The "What the Fuck?" looks that were passed cracked up the duo.

"I will drown in the fear," Harry finally said. "And you need to back slowly away from the music, my dear. It does bad things to your head."

"But it's sooooooooo addicting."

"Oh, I know. Trust me on that. There is a _reason_ Dray and I skipped school to attend that concert." Harry paled the moment the words were out of his mouth. Hermione's eyes narrowed darkly. Harry gripped Sirius' hand, trying to hide behind his body.

"Harry!" Hermione growled and Harry yelped.

"We didn't think you'd be willing to come with us!"

"Harry!" Hermione shrieked and Harry ran into the dorm room, dragging Sirius behind him.


	20. Chapter 20

_Rambles - Ok, so I think I screwed up in posting, and posted my own chapters instead of the ones that had been beta'd, I went back to chapter 17 and reposted the chapters. I hope the spelling/grammar is better. Soooo sorry, and thank you **cckeimig**__ for pointing it out for me._

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Twenty.**

The dance was closing in and the chaos of the last few weeks was nothing in comparison to the insanity of the present week. Harry was so relieved that he actually had a date this time around, no matter how unorthodox people might find it. He had hated finding one in fourth year, and after that had just insisted Hermione be his date.

Speaking of Hermione, she still wanted to skin him alive after she found out Harry and Draco had gone to that concert without her. Go him and his big mouth for spilling _that_ particular secret. But she was willing to let him live under his oath that she be the first person he thought to bring the next time the band was anywhere near them. Or they were near them, more particularly, given the current situation.

It was so strange to see Hermione and Lily get wrapped up in the dance chaos, but as Harry wasn't concerned about what he was wearing, he shook it out of his mind. Both girls would look amazing, and Remus would stutter when he talked to Hermione and James would probably faint on the spot when Lily came down. Harry grinned as he thought about it. Maybe he should find a video camera before the event.

Sirius peered down at the boy on his bed. "What are you smirking at, love?" he asked and Harry grinned up at him. They hadn't spoken of Harry's confession; whether it was a conscious decision or not, they just avoided bringing it up. But Sirius' endearments? That would have to be the third time he had called Harry 'love' in the last two weeks. It made him smile as much as 'babe' did.

"Just picturing Friday. Remus and James are going to drool."

"Oh?" Sirius asked. "I take it you know what the girls are wearing?"

Harry raised an eyebrow in skepticism. "With as secretive as they're being? Hardly. But Hermione Granger is my best friend, so Remus had _better_ be drooling when he sees her."

"I bet you're the only guy who would say that about his girl," Sirius snickered and grinned at Harry, leaning over him to kiss him.

When they pulled apart Harry cocked an eyebrow at him. "Darlin, I'm pretty much 100 gay. There's not much I can do for Hermione."

Sirius snickered at that, smiling down at Harry. "Speakin' of which, are you going to tell me what you're wearing?"

"Of course not, where's the fun in that?"

"But - but, if you don't tell me, how am I supposed to colour-coordinate?" Harry eyed his boyfriend in amusement. Sirius looked utterly devastated, his gorgeous blue eyes widened comically and his lower lip trembled. And it was all Harry could do to keep from laughing. So he leant foreword and took Sirius' lower lip between his teeth, nibbling lightly. "Black, Babe, stick with black."

"Well, then," Sirius huffed. "There go my plans. I was going to wear that wonderful bubblegum pink sweater vest I saw in Hogsmeade."

Harry blinked at Sirius. Sirius blinked at Harry. Harry shuddered. "God, I hope you're joking." Sirius managed to keep a straight face for a few more seconds, before collapsing into giggles.

"Oh, oh, your face, Babe, your face was bloody priceless."

Harry scowled, and reached up to whack at Sirius. The older boy laughed and dodged the attack. He took hold of Harry's arm and dragged him off the bed, spinning the two of them in a circle. Winded when they stopped spinning Harry let himself be pushed up on the bed. As Sirius crawled up the length of the bed, Harry snickered.

"Sometimes, you're much more like a panther than a dog."

Sirius smirked, a predatory gleam in his eyes as he captured Harry's lips with his own. "That's really not an insult, Babe." Sirius whispered between kisses. His lips trailed down to Harry's shirt, playing with the first button there.

"Oh, Merlin… Siri!" Harry whined at the brief loss of contact, before Sirius' hands replaced his lips. Sirius was smirking at him, and in retaliation, Harry shifted his legs and then his body weight, so that he flipped them over. With a grin Harry pulled apart Sirius' shirt and Sirius pushed a hand to his chest to stop his foreword momentum.

"No hickeys."

And Harry burst into laughter, collapsing on top of Sirius. "Oh, good God, Sirius! Way to ruin the moment!" Harry giggled again, his eyes light with humor.

There was a knock on their dorm door and Harry and Sirius looked at each other with amusement. "Come in," they said.

"Hey - oh, hey," Hermione blushed slightly when she saw them still lying on Sirius' bed. "I picked up that stuff for you, Harry," she said.

Harry jumped off Sirius and rushed for the bag in Hermione's hands. He opened it, peeked inside, and grinned at her. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"I don't know why you insist on terrifying the student body," the know-it-all chided.

Harry beamed at her, "It's not terrifying, it's hot. Very hot."

"You're in lust with him!" Hermione proclaimed and Sirius' head shot up, his eyes narrow.

"Have I ever denied it? Come on, Mione… Even you think he's hot!" Sirius watched the two, a frown creasing his eyebrows.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Hermione rolled his eyes, and glanced at the bag. "You have no idea how weird it was to buy you that stuff. I don't even buy it for myself."

Harry smiled at her, and stored it in his trunk. "I know, but think of how weird it would have been if _I_ had bought it?"

"I should tell you no. I should just steal that bag and tell you no. It's an addiction, Harry. You're addicted to him."

"Yes," Harry nodded his head easily. "You're right, I don't deny it. It's an addiction, and I need to fight it." Then he shrugged and grinned happily. "I'll work on that after the dance. I hope you don't mind taking my pictures from me. Until I'm over him that is."

"Yeah, like I'd give them back to you. You don't need anyone feeding that obsession."

"But-but-but, Hermione!" Harry pouted, his eyes going wide and Sirius scowled. "He's pweeeeettttyyy!!!"

"Yes, he is, but you also have a very adorable boyfriend whose --"

"He is, isn't he?" Harry asked, a smile spread over his face, red dusting his cheeks.

"Like I was saying, he probably doesn't appreciate your lust for a singer that he's never seen."

Harry's eyes widened comically, he turned to face Sirius, mouth agape. "You've never seen him… how is that… it's just not… everyone should… well." Harry took a deep breath, to calm himself. "I'll show him to you on Friday. Trust me, it's worth it."

"So," Sirius drawled. "I have to wait three days to find out who you're lusting after?"

"Yes… but it's worth it. He's hot."

"Good God, Harry!" Hermione growled. "Why don't you go rape him and get it over with?"

"I would," Harry countered. "But his pretty little guitarist might have a problem with that. And I wouldn't want to upset Sirius like that."

"So, you're just going to remain in lust with him?" Sirius asked, not sure whether to be annoyed or amused. He tried to settle for somewhere in between.

"Yes, don't worry, love, I've been in lust with him for a couple years now."

Hermione watched then, before slowly backing out of the room. She was almost certain Harry was in deep shit, and really didn't want to be around to see how he got himself out of that one.

Harry caught Hermione's exit out of the corner of his eye, and noted that Sirius had caught it as well. Their eyes locked again, and Harry winced slightly. His smile disappearing. "He's just a rock star, Sirius, someone I'm never going to meet. It's healthy to lust after rock stars. As long as you don't let it become an obsession…" Harry glanced at his trunk with a guilty expression. "I think I let it become an obsession."

"You honestly have pictures of him in your trunk?" Harry heard the bitter amusement in Sirius' voice.

"Err, like, three…mostly they're of the band. You should see my room if you want…errr… never mind…" Harry glanced away, blushing. "He was my hero before I realized that I was in lust with him. It actually really surprised me, but then made total sense when Draco attacked me on the Quidditch Pitch…and you probably really don't want to hear about how I ended up making out with Draco, do you?" Harry laughed nervously.

"Not really," Sirius agreed, his dark sapphire eyes watching his boyfriend. He watched the smaller boy twitch, glance at him and away. It was obvious Sirius' lack of response was getting to him, which was good because Sirius didn't really know what to say as he wasn't used to being jealous of his partners' previous dates or crushes. It was strange how Harry brought this stuff out in him.

Harry walked towards Sirius, who was sitting with his feet on the floor. Sliding into Sirius' lap, facing the man, Harry locked eyes with him. "Here's the thing… he's a rock star. He's famous, a celebrity. A _Muggle_ celebrity. He's not in our world, and he never will be. It's safe, Sirius, because there's nothing there. You, on the other hand, you're real, we're real, because there is something there." Harry paused, leaning in to kiss Sirius. "And I love you, just thought I'd tell you that again," he added when Sirius jolted at the first words.

"You two better be decent!" James' voice shouted from the door and Sirius groaned.

"You ruin all our fun, Potter!" Harry shouted back and James snickered as he walked in.

"I'm pretty sure you're going to ruin my fun for like, six months!"

Harry blanched, his face paling, and he shuddered. "Ew, ew, ew… EWWWWW!!! James! I so didn't need to hear that!"

Remus walked into the room laughing, he glanced at Sirius and Harry and grinned. James walked to his bed without sparing them a second glance. He changed his shirt and flung open his trunk, dumping his belongings into it.

"Come home with me," he said, and Harry knew the question (or rather, statement) was directed at himself.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure, I mean, it's not like Mum will be there much. She's part of Dumbledore's resistance, and works for the Ministry as an Auror. I mean, you and Mione were planning to stay here anyway, so we can just tell Mum that I didn't want you to be bored, which is true. But you and Sirius will have to have separate rooms, Mum would freak otherwise. And Since Peter's going with his family to Luxemburg, you and Hermione can be there for the full moon!!!" James grinned, looking incredibly pleased with himself.

"I think that's where you get your rambling from," Sirius murmured in Harry's ear, earning a laugh from the smaller boy.

"Well?" James insisted, looking anxious. "Are you going to come or not? And I warn you, there's really only one answer to that question!"

Harry paused, glancing at the beaming James, to the grinning Sirius and then to Remus. "Would Moony mind, do you think? Because I'm not willing to put Mione in danger if you're not sure."

"I think," Remus paused. "I think that Moony's gotten used to you both being there. Even though it's not the full moon, the wolf is still there, you know? In the background. I don't think he'd go after either you or Hermione. And as it is, she is a bird, so she can fly away."

If they thought James' grin couldn't get any wider, they were wrong. Harry worried briefly that his face was going to crack in two as James pulled him from Sirius' lap and swung him around. "This is going to be awesome!!! We are going to have so much fun!"

_… TBC …_

_Reviews – Deborah - Hehehe, thanks, I'm so glad this story is so well received. The song Mione sings is "Kill All Your Friends" from My Chemical Romance._

_ElizaHPFAN - Hehe, I love replying to reviews, even if it takes me a while to do so. The song Mione sings is "Kill All Your Friends" from My Chemical Romance. I was obsessed. Draco? Well, I'm still not 100 sure that he is coming. Though I really, really want him to. -sigh-. _

_Nevaeh Black - I love cliffhangers, to the point I had this one story that ended entirely in cliffies. -smirks- But I think I'll post 22 as one chapter and save everyone the heart attacks. Thanks for the review, and the sucking up. -grins-_

_Rambles - Holy crow, this story has been going for two years, and has twenty chapters… and plus five hundred reviews. Almost two hundred story alerts. Wow guys. Thank you so much. You're reviews encourage me to write when I really don't want to._

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight._


	21. Chapter 21

_Rambles - THIS BETTER FUCKING WORK!!! GOOD GOD! I JUST WANTED TO UPDATE THIS STORY!!! Honestly, stupid fanfiction being broken! I tried updating this first at 10am today, and repeatedly after that before and now after my final exam..._

_So, Who's got ORDER OF THE PHEONIX? I DO! I DO! I DO!!!!!!!!!!!!! I swear Dan and Gary want us to create slash fiction about their characters… have you seen them during the movie… Ok, this was beta'd by cckeimig… thank you so much._

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Twenty-One.**

The night of the dance finally dawned and the afternoon classes were canceled in favor of preparations for the dance. The majority of the student body was in a hectic frenzy getting ready. Even Lily and Hermione seemed caught up in the craziness. Harry had locked himself in the bathroom with the bag Hermione had given him and a pile of clothes.

Sirius pouted when he tried to open the locked door. Jimmying the doorknob he heard Harry's laugh on the other side. In the bathroom, Harry eyed the contents of the bag, and then the picture he'd pinned to the mirror. Picking up the black eye pencil he really wished he had more practice with this.

Biting at his lip, Harry ran the pencil under his eye, too far under. Cursing, he wiped his face clean and tried again; bringing the pencil closer, he tried to stop the rapid blinking that seemed to be reflex. Blinking away the moisture that was welling at the corners of his eyes, Harry stared at his reflection and frowned. He smudged the marks the pencil had made and shook his head, unsatisfied.

Trying again, he tensed his hand to stop the shaking and smudged the pencil under his right eye, then his left. Glancing at himself, he nodded slightly. He closed his eyes, trying to keep one open, and drew the pencil across his fluttering lids. Swearing as his hand wavered, he tried again and smiled somewhat before scrubbing his eyelids clean and trying again. Darker still, closer and thicker.

Harry blinked when he saw himself. His normally vibrant eyes fucking shone. They were darker, brighter, clearer. The emerald green seemed to take over, and Harry smiled. He was glad he wasn't wearing glasses anymore, having gotten rid of them sometime last spring in favor of Muggle contacts. Running the pencil over his eyes again, Harry smudged it ever so slightly and studied his reflection beside the picture.

His hair, which he hadn't cut since the growth stunting spell had worn off, had definitely gotten longer. Harry took the hair gel out of the bag and warmed it on his fingers before running it through his hair. He dragged his fingers through his hair, mussing it slightly. His fingers pulled at his bangs till they were covering his scar.

With his hair out of the way, Harry turned around to eye the clothes he had brought in with him. He could complete the image properly, Harry thought, as he eyed one pile of black jeans and dark shirts. Or he could make Sirius drool, as in the other pile was the present from the twins.

Was there really any competition?

Hesitating slightly, Harry picked up the shiny black trousers. He had never actually worn them in public before; the coat was one thing, but the trousers? Another issue all together. Taking a deep breath, Harry changed his plain trousers for his leather ones. Harry looked at himself, wondering what the fuck he was doing. Wearing leather in public was something Sirius would do, and be damned proud of it too. But Harry… despite all appearances, Harry wasn't nearly as confident at his boyfriend.

He heard Hermione's whispering chiding, and wondered when she became able to link into his mind without him opening the path first.

_"You do realize those other trousers are even tighter than the leather ones, don't you? You're Harry-bleeding-Potter. The Boy-Who-Lived. There is nothing you can't do, even if it's spending the night in ridiculous trousers."_

_"Thanks – Thanks a lot, Hermione,"_ Harry grumbled and his sister laughed at him. He cut off the connection and blocked her from his mind. Reaching into the bag she had given him, Harry pulled out a container of brush-in dye. He continued adding the dark green to his hair at random; going over parts he had already dyed, until it stood out clearly. Then he ran his fingers through his hair, mussing it again. He carefully rid himself of his shirt, opting instead for the black button up one that he had received for his seventeenth birthday. Leaving the top buttons undone, Harry flattened the collar and studied his appearance.

Something was – Harry reached it the bag, pulling out the silver chain he's put there. Locking it around his neck, he felt the small cross fall inside his shirt. He glanced at himself and nodded with satisfaction. Now the only problem was moving around without Sirius seeing him. Pulling on his long leather coat Harry cast a disillusion spell on himself to hide his appearance.

When Harry pulled the bathroom door open, he cocked an eyebrow at Sirius. The young Animagus was standing in the doorway, staring at Harry intently. "You don't look any different," Sirius whined and Harry laughed quietly.

"Magic, my love, magic." He kissed Sirius on the cheek, and strolled to his bed, putting his stuff away. Sirius locked himself into the bathroom, laughing through the door at James' protests.

Remus smiled at Harry, tilting his head at his friends with amusement. "I don't think they'll ever grow up." Remus turned his amber eyes to the bathroom door. "Why don't you two idiots share the bathroom? Geez…"

A few moments later, Sirius opened the door and let James in. The elder Potter let out a triumphant glare as Harry and Remus were left alone in the dorm room.

"Disillusionment Charm?" Remus asked and Harry grinned.

"It works," he agreed and the wolf nodded.

"Once those two are done, we're going to meet the girls and head down to the Great Hall. I hope they're ready soon."

"Who, James and Sirius? Or Lily and Hermione?"

"The girls," Remus replied and Harry snickered.

"Again, I ask who?"

Remus laughed his amber eyes light with excitement, and humor. "I'll have you know, Little Potter, you took just as long as those two will take."

"Oh, yes, I know. But you see, it's all in the genes. So I get to blame James Potter for being such a girl. He has no one to blame."

"You're definitely a Marauder's son, aren't you, Harry?"

"Yes," Harry agreed. "I really am."

Remus and Harry waited a while longer until James and Sirius came out of the bathroom, laughing and glaring at each other. Harry eyed them both, the plain black trousers James was wearing, along with a blue T-Shirt. Harry's eyes darted to Sirius, and his mouth threatened to fall open. Here was Sirius Black, the hottest guy at Hogwarts (courtesy of Harry's own personal list – which started and ended with Sirius Black) and he was all Harry's. Dressed in skin tight trousers and an equally tight black shirt, his normally straight black hair was flatter than ever and Harry could almost make out a shock of silver on his ears.

With his fingers itching to touch, Harry hadn't realized he was staring until Remus and James started scoffing. "Let's go get the girls while these two finish eye-fucking each other," came James' laughing voice.

Sirius' eyes never left Harry, even as he spoke to James. "We'll be there in a moment, Prongs. Harry here's got something to show me."

When they are left alone, Sirius halted Harry's eager fingers. "Take off the Disillusionment Charm."

There was a pout, a smirk and Harry muttered the counter-spell. He blinked up at Sirius the moment the spell ended and found himself horizontal on a bed he vaguely thought could be Remus' with an eager puppy sucking on his lips. Harry returned the kiss with as much enthusiasm as Sirius was showing. Sirius pulled away after a moment, he ground their hips together and jumped off of Harry, his hair a disheveled mess. His eyes were glassy, and his hands weren't steady. It was pretty obvious what they'd just been doing.

"We have a dance to get to, love." Sirius held out one hand and pulled Harry to his feet. The young hero eyed Sirius before conjuring a mirror to fix his own reflection. Sirius' hands stopped Harry's from going to his hair. "Leave it."

"Fine," Harry said and turned his face to kiss Sirius again. He stepped back and eyed his boyfriend. "Wait, wait," he muttered and rushed to his trunk, pulling it open. "Come here, come here!" Sirius moved to Harry, who was still on his knees, rummaging in his trunk. He stood up and slid a silver studded belt through the loops on Sirius' trousers. And because he wanted to, his fingers jumped to Sirius' ear and he pushed his hair aside to reveal the earrings running down his ear.

"Merlin, you're hot," Harry whispered before leaning up and kissing Sirius again. Sirius' hand found the cross around Harry's neck, and he stared at it for a moment, before pulling it off of Harry. Any protest died as Sirius replaced the missing necklace with his own signet P. "Sirius?" Harry asked, his voice quiet.

Sirius glanced at Harry, then away and back at him again. "You're mine alright? Especially tonight. I'll have to get that back from you, because James would so kick my ass, but, I …"

"Sirius?" Harry waited for the young man's gaze to return to him. "Let's go, eh?"

"Yeah, let's make everyone drool, gorgeous."

OoOoO

The Marauders and girls were waiting impatiently for Harry and Sirius to arrive, and when they did, they were wishing the two boys would turn around and go back up to their dorms. It was silent, deathly silent as the couple, handsome on normal days, stunning tonight, walked towards the small group of their friends.

Everyone was staring, male and female. After a moment of silence, the whispering started, hot and heavy, fast and giggly. Several girls stared open-mouthed at the sight Sirius and Harry made, others tried a more tactful approach, but they were still staring. As Sirius and Harry neared their friends they snickered quietly.

Ashley jumped in front of them, camera in her hands. She snapped a picture, then another, before either male could think to argue the fact. "Ashley," Harry growled and the girl, in a short black skirt and dark blue tank top and a black mesh shirt on top grinned over the camera.

"What? Come on, I know you want a picture to remember tonight, and if you don't there are dozens of girls that do." Ashley moved away from them and snapped a couple of Lily and James before taking some of Hermione and Remus. "All together now," she said, ushering the group closer together. She beamed at them behind her camera before handing it to Remus. "Take a couple of the girls alright?" She grabbed both Lily and Hermione before ordering Remus to press the button repeatedly.

She stole the camera from his hands and motioned the boys together. "We need Peter to complete the image," she said after taking a picture. "Where is he?"

"Here," Peter squeaked as he hurried up to them from the entrance to the Common Room. "Sorry I'm late." Ashley took a few more pictures before moving on.

"I'm the unofficial official photographer of tonight. The Headmaster wants me to get pictures of everyone."

As she darted away, the group of friends looked at each other. "Ready to go?" James asked his collection of friends. There was a round of nods and James took Lily's hand. Remus offered Hermione his arm and she wrapped hers around his. Peter strolled after them, with Sirius and Harry bringing up the rear. Sirius slid an arm around Harry's waist, his fingers playing with the ends of Harry's shirt. Harry mimicked the gesture and looped his fingers under Sirius' belt. Together they followed their friends down to the Great Hall.

… TBC …

_Reviews -__ So for some reason I'm not capable of writing responses to my reviews? WTF??? _

Shadow Spirit - thanks, I love being aww worthy. :D

ElizaHPFAN - Hmmm… I'm not sure how, but I got stuck on Harry/Draco, it's like my third OTP in this fandom… Ahh, more jealous Siri… yes, well, we're not sure if it will happen in the story (by we I mean my brain and I) but I actually get write a ficlet about it… It's awesome and almost finished. :DDD

Rosa Rainboweyes - Ahh, thanks… :D You can't wait to see what happens? Yeah, me either. It's driving me up the walls. Welll…………. I can't say for sure, since I don't know myself yet either -sighs- It will be fun figuring it out.

Neveah Black - I look foreword to you're reviews, just for the sucking up of them :D Very shameless, but I'm really not complaining… trust me on that.

SlytheringRules - Yeah for Harry's lusting… it makes everyone laugh… :D

Moving.into.next.week. - So, I like your name, not really sure why… thanks for the review…

Doggirl - here's some more.

Heartproof - Can I say I love you for knowing the song? And loving it. And for refering to them as Gred and Forge… So, gunna bask in the praise… lalalallalalalalla… oh, I guess you want more, huh? Ok then.

Rambles - Well, that's chapter twenty one, and yes, I do know it's short. I also know that chapter twenty two is 16 pages… so there. :P Umm… I'm pretty sure this chapter was created for the sole purpose of Harry and Sirius making out… is anyone complaining? Actually, they do that a lot in the next chappy as well…. -shrugs- Um, yes, my last exam is today, and I was going to post this AFTERWORDS… but I decided not to. Being able to come home to all those glorious reviews -hinthint- is sooo worth it.

Also, I'll let you know, I'm in the middle of two Siri/Harry one shots, which I will post once they are finished and beta'd… who else is looking forewords to them, besides for Jen…

Luv ya'll

Lady Starlight :D 


	22. Chapter 22

_Rambles - Hey, guys, so, finally, the beta'd version of this chapter... I shall update the next when I get it back... and I'm almost done twenty four as well. There's been some serious changes in my life, and it appears there are going to be more coming, so I just wanted to let you know, I am working on TA... but I don't have much free time. I just got a laptop, and I also set up the wireless internet, so I can use the net on my laptop... (Feb.16/08) And as of, March 17, I rewrote a scene and resposted it._

_Now, to that list of rambles I had going..._

_If I've turned Harry to feminem, I would like someone to inform me of that, and if you have a sugesstion of how I can fix that, then by all means let me know. The last thing I want is for my boy!characters to act like girls._

_Because this is a social event, there are quite a few characters in this chapter... I hope they aren't to confusing, They also won't play much of a role, but they will be mentioned again. Also... if you recognize certain characters... then I don't own then and you can blame the fact that I have no life._

_Here's an important one, I made a mistake early on about the characters. Frank and Alice Longbottom? I accidentally named her 'Alicia.' As of today, however, I went back and fixed that so if you are by chance rereading this story and see her as 'Alicia' anywhere, let me know, and I'll fix that. I think I got them all...but I'm not sure._

_Oh, and even better... I fixed the 'mon soeur' error back in chapter twelve! Whoot!_

_This chapter is hell ass long so I'll let you get to it shortly..._

_I dedicate this chapter to everone I've been talking to online, Del, TPO, Kelsey, Jen, and overchay. As well as all the wonderful reviewers that make writing this so much more fun, and to all those who have added this story without reviewing, I hope you get the chance to tell me what you think of it. Happy Christmas all of you, and have a great New Years as well._

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Twenty Two.**

He tried not to be amazed; really he did. But as he strolled through the doors to the Great Hall with his arm around Sirius and his friends grouped together, he couldn't help but admit he was.

The hall looked amazing. The walls were tinted blue; a dark colour that got lighter the higher it was on the wall. The ceiling had been charmed to show a snowy night sky with dark blue clouds. The four long House tables had been replaced with dozens of smaller tables, set to sit eight. Against the side wall the Head Table had been separated into three smaller tables and they lined the wall instead. Where the students tables stopped opened up to a large dance floor towards the front of the Hall and a buffet table near the back. There was a DJ in the farthest corner who looked like he belonged on the cover of some rap magazine.

Music played quietly; though it was nothing Harry recognized, which really didn't surprise him. Students trailed into the Hall in packs; friends grouped together as they looked warily around, as if suspecting James had booby-trapped the room, Which, really, wouldn't have shocked Harry, either. The group sat at a table near the front of the dance floor, sitting around it as they watched others come in. From shy little first year Hufflepuffs, to the outrageously self-confident Slytherins dressed head to toe in black.

They wore standard black, as if they didn't realize other colours existed, though he did see a flash of green in there somewhere. It looked as if all the females had decided to mimic Naricassa Black in style, since she was the unspoken Queen of Slytherin. And her Prince wasn't nearly as icy as Draco. Harry watched the Slytherins for a while, his heart slamming in his chest; he had to forcefully remind himself that Bella LeStrange was trapped in the dungeons of St. Mungo's and it was Bellatrix Black that strolled in wearing a tight leather dress of similar cut to the one she'd been wearing during the last battle, the last time he'd seen her. 

Though Harry spent next to no time with the Slytherins, he still recognized several of them. Harry couldn't help but wonder if being born identical to your parents was a Wizard thing, or just a frequent genetic fluke.

After the Slytherins made a show of grouping together in the furthest corner, the atmosphere in the Great Hall tentatively relaxed again. They hadn't done anything drastic, so there was no reason to respond as such. But the nagging worry was there. These were the Pure-blooded Slytherins, after all, and they were forced by their own upbringing to attend what they would see as a _Muggle_ event. They were not going to be happy.

"They can be a scary lot, can't they?" Lily muttered to her friends. Her eyes lingered on the table, a sad look entering them before she looked away and blocked whatever memories were haunting her. Harry said nothing for a moment, wondering what he was missing.

"They strive to it," Harry replied as he purposely turned his head away from the Slytherins. There was no reason to waste the night by glaring at them.

"Harry?" Lily asked and Harry shrugged.

"They're living up to what's expected of them. They've always been labeled _evil_ so why not prove the rest of the Wiz World, and start killing people and worshipping Voldemort? Even if it's not what they want to do, it's what they will do, because that's what's expected of them."

"That's pretty deep conversation for a party," a voice broke in and the teens turned to stare at the intruder. Frank Longbottom grinned at them with Alicia Prewett on his arm. Behind him were several other senior students. And Harry realized that once again he had hooked up with a select group of friends and forgot to socialize with the rest of the world. It really was a bad habit. And bad manners as well. 

"Frankiekins," Sirius teased. "Didn't you know, we're all full of deep and meaningful things."

"I'll bet," Frank snorted in disgust. "The most meaningful thing you've got going is your relationship with your hair."

"Oh!" Sirius gasped, his hands going to his chest. "That hurts." With his usual exaggerated grace Sirius sagged against Harry. And stopped moving.

Harry studied Sirius for a moment, before raising his emerald eyes to Frank. "You know, if you've killed my boyfriend, I'm going to be really upset."

Frank frowned, as if he was trying to decipher the joke in Harry's words. From behind the future Auror came a snort.

"You could always give him mouth-to-mouth," a blond boy stepped foreword, his eyes lighting on Sirius and Harry. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"Oh, I'm quite certain he'd more than be up for it," Harry agreed. "But we promised we wouldn't make a spectacle of ourselves."

"I DID NO SUCH THING!" Sirius exclaimed as he jumped into his seat. "Blasphemy, my love, blasphemy! How dare you utter such words? And in the presence of Ladies – And Prongs! It's just blasphemous!"

Harry smiled and wrapped his arms around Sirius. "It worked, though, didn't it?" he whispered in the dog's ear while James demanded to know why he was included in with the girls.

The blond grinned brightly and Harry could see it glaze over the hidden emotions in his eyes. A jealousy that wasn't really…

"How's Brian?" Sirius asked the blond and received a scowl. "Still ignoring you, then?"

"He's trying to, anyway." A petite brunette ducked under the blond's arm and grinned at Sirius. "Its not like Justin's giving him much of a choice, though, is he?"

"Screw off, Daph," the blond muttered and Harry raised an eyebrow.

The female, Daph, grinned at Harry. "I'm Daphne. This idiot here's Justin. I don't think we've ever actually been introduced."

"No, I don't think so either," Harry agreed and offered his hand to Daphne. "You're not in Gryffindor are you?"

"No, I'm in Ravenclaw, though I hang out in the Lions' Den since Justin's my best friend."

"I'd rather hang out in the Den with the Lions, then in the Nest with the brainiac Ravens, Daph," Justin said. He turned to Harry and offered his own hand. "Justin Taylor. I share the dorm with Frank and Sammy. Which is probably why we don't socialize often."

"There were so many male Gryffindors in our year," Sammy said from the side as he walked up, "That we needed two dorm rooms. We're down from twelve to eight now, and that includes you."

"Twelve?" Hermione mouthed to Harry and the Hero blinked rapidly.

"But the dorms only hold five…"

The Maruaders grinned at each other, wicked smirks that sent shivers down Harry's spine. Justin, Frank and Sammy looked at each other and shuddered. The dorms might be designed to hold five, but they had made it work with eight people.

"We learned fast," Frank spoke up. "That no one wanted to dorm with those that would become the Marauders."

"Actually," Justin spoke up. "We were amazed at first, when you managed to survive a whole month in their domain."

"No one has ever done that before," Sammy shuddered as if trying to repress memories and the pranksters grinned at each other.

"It's not his fault he's so cute," Sirius said as he leaned against Harry's chest.

"Obviously not," Justin grinned and pulled Daphne away, waving behind him as they left.

"Well, I guess that's our cue," Sammy said and grinned at the Gryffindors. "Have fun tonight." Then Sammy smirked at Sirius and Harry, "Though not to much fun, because getting caught freaking sucks."

The Gryffindors laughed at that, all in agreement, before Sammy, Frank and Alicia left. The music had gotten louder as the hall filled with students. Groups could be seen maneuvering around tables or surrounding the buffet tables. "Drinks?" Sirius asked and there was a nod of agreement. Only James and Harry narrowed their eyes on the Marauder. Sirius gave them both an innocent grin.

"I'll come with you," Harry decided and saw the grin falter, though only briefly.

Sirius looped his arm around Harry and whispered something in the younger boy's ear. Something that had him blushing. Harry shook his head and glared at Sirius, the dog grinned back, unfazed. Sirius reached for Harry's hand and spun the emerald-eyed boy in a circle. Harry stared at him, unamused. So Sirius dragged him closer and wrapped his arms around Harry's waist. Sirius raised Harry's head and smashed their lips together, uncaring of the students around them. When Sirius deepened the kiss instead of pulling back Harry slipped his arms up around Sirius' neck and stood on his toes.

"Merlin, you can't even keep your lips off each other long enough to get us drinks, can you?"

"Huh?" Harry asked, dragging his lips away from Sirius. Who obviously didn't like that plan because he dragged Harry's face back to his and flipped off James.

"Save it for your boy," James suggested and grabbed a tray of drinks. "And you're scaring the children," James said. This caused Harry to forcefully pull away. The young Hero blinked a couple of times before his eyes took in all the eyes staring at him.

Including an identical pair of blue eyes that he knew all too well. "Mr. Granger?" the blue-eyed redhead blinked at Harry and Harry glanced behind him to an identical red head and a girl with purple hair who―oh, shit, that was Tonks. And Bill. And Charlie who was staring at him as if he were God.

Rolling his shoulders Harry shifted to look at the first year. He raised an eyebrow and tried not to notice the hand that was still playing with the waistband of his trousers. Charlie looked lost for words, as he stared at Harry in wonder. It was damn creepy and reminded Harry all too strongly of the worshipful gazes he got in his own time.

"Charlie!" Bill hissed from behind him and Charlie seemed to snap out of his trance.

"Mr. Granger," Charlie spoke again, and Harry still thought the name sounded ridiculous when applied to him. He much preferred Snape yelling _Potter_ like it was a bad thing. "Um, I was wondering if you'd sign this for me." He held up a worn copy of _Quidditch Through the Ages_ and blushed. "You're an absolutely brilliant seeker. I hope one day I can play as well as you."

Harry laughed quietly, taking the book from Charlie and summoning a quill. He looked down at Charlie expectantly. "I need your name, mate."

"I'm Charlie, Charlie Weasley."

Harry nodded and scribed his message, barely able to restrain from adding _Potter_ to his first name. He underlined it with his usual lightening bolt and handed the book back to Charlie. "You keep that safe, hmm?" Harry said with a smile. "Some day it's going to be worth a lot of money."

"Thank you, Mr. Granger." Charlie blushed through his freckled and stared wide-eyed at the book.

"Come _on_ Charlie!" Tonks whined, her eyes pink. And matching her shoes. "We got what you came for, now will you dance with me?" Tonks grinned up at the boys. "See you later, Siri," she said before taking off.

But Charlie never took his eyes off the book as Bill thanked Harry and dragged his younger brother back to their table. Harry worried his lip, laying his head on Sirius shoulder, just under his own arm while his other hand was twined with Sirius'.

"What is it?" Sirius asked as he lowered his head to kiss Harry again.

"Nothing," Harry said and Sirius raised a brow at him, but said nothing. Harry looked after where Charlie, Bill and Tonks had disappeared, a frown on his face. "I just can't help but wonder… how much damage am I doing? Those are my friends, my family… and I could have just changed their lives forever. What if, by signing that book, Charlie decides he wants to --" But Harry's inevitable rant was cut off by Sirius lips pressed against his. And this time, it was just to silence him. Pulling back, Sirius smoothed out the tension between Harry's eyes.

"There are always going to be what-ifs, Harry. The situation isn't exactly the easiest. What if you did screw up? Then we'll deal with that. But what if you didn't? Have you thought of that? What if by coming here, by signing a book, and talking to Lily and befriending James… what if that's what you're supposed to do? What if being here, now, is your destiny? Then you can't screw it up, Harry. Just follow your gut. Do what you feel is right. And you really can't go wrong."

This time it was Harry who leaned up and pressed his lips to Sirius'. Harry pulled away and fell to his feet again, burrowing his head under Sirius' chin. "I can't lose you," he whispered quietly, and pretended that he hadn't been thinking _again_.

"You're not going to," Sirius insisted. "Not unless you want to."

Harry pulled away and plastered a bright smile on his face. "Come on!" He said as he snagged Sirius' hand. "Let's spike the punch." Sirius' mouth fell open in mock-horror and Harry snickered. "I know you want to," he taunted and Sirius looked back at their table, to their chatting friends, to the punch bowl.

"As far as their concerned, you forced me to do it. There is no way I did it of my own free will."

"Of course not," Harry grinned. "Why would you think something like that?"

"I have no idea, since I didn't. It's just dastardly."

"And devious," Harry grinned.

"Not to mention it would merit many detentions," Sirius nodded emphatically.

"Are you girls going to keep talking, or are we going to turn this shin-dig into a party?" James asked as he carried the tray of empty cups. The three black-haired males smirked at each other and surrounded the punch tactfully, taking turns filling the empty cups; they appeared to be chatting.

And it was a little too innocent for Minerva's taste. "I suppose," she said to Poppy. "that it would be best if we avoided the punch bowl for the remainder of the evening."

"Yes," Poppy agreed. "It's strange, isn't it, how like their parents the offspring can be?"

Minerva shot Poppy a swift look, eyes narrowed and suspicious. Poppy merely smiled. "I know my students, Minerva. And I know them well."

"Perhaps," Albus spoke from behind them. "We can have this conversation in a much more suitable place, at a more suitable time?"

"Of course, Albus," Minerva agreed.

"How tactless of us to forget our surroundings," Poppy added.

The two women shared a look as Albus moved on, his eyes lingering on Harry's table, and then on Harry himself. The young man glanced up and caught Albus' eye. And held it.

Until Sirius whispered in his ear and sent Harry into a fit of laughter. "You're utterly hopeless aren't you?"

"Umm," Sirius said, "Let me think about that. …Thinking… thinking… Yes… in most cases."

"This definitely being one of them," Harry agreed and rolled his eyes at the puppy look. "How about we eat before joining the sweaty bodies on the dance floor?" Sirius seemed to contemplate that, and his eyes lit up with interest.

"Yes, that sounds like a plan," he decided.

Conversation carried on as the group ate and the music got even louder in order to be heard over the moving students. The sweat was covered by several Charms, thanks to Lily's clever thinking and each table was semi-soundproofed, so that they could hear each other over the music.

Remus glanced at the dance floor when the music slowed down and then looked to Hermione. "Would you care to dance?" he asked quietly, and Hermione beamed up at him.

"I'd love to," she said and took his hand. Then she recognized the song. "Lily! Did you go through my music?"

"Surprise?" Lily asked hopefully, while shooting a glare at a smug James.

"Just… be careful with it."

"Fuck it," Harry said suddenly and dragged Sirius into the throng of dancing teens. "Someone get me to the doctor," Harry whispered the words as he crashed his lips to Sirius'.

"I thought," Sirius said. "That you weren't going to make out with me on the dance floor."

"Are you really complaining?" Harry asked and Sirius laughed.

"Hell, no, love."

The music caught them both; the dark beat creeping up and taking over. And for once, Harry really didn't care that there was a school full of students and teachers that could be watching them.

"They can't keep their lips off of each other, can they?" Lily asked with mild amusement as she caught sight of Sirius and Harry, once again locking lips on the dance floor.

"I think they've stopped trying," James agreed. He pulled out a chair for Lily and the redhead slipped into it gracefully.

"Well, as long as they keep their clothes on, I suppose," Lily replied and James snorted. Lily found her eyes following the couple again. "This is going to sound strange," Lily muttered. "But I keep having this nagging feeling that I _know_ him. Like I _should_ know him."

James frowned, hiding the worry behind a smile. "You _do_ know him, Lils. You've known him for almost five months now."

Lily scowled, shaking her head. "No…" she whispered, "it's not that."

James bit his lip. Concern washing through him. On one hand, he didn't want to lie to Lily. He _loved_ Lily… but on the other hand. He had promised Harry and Hermione that he wouldn't tell their story for them. He was going to keep it quiet.

That meant distracting Lily.

And luckily for him his son could always be counted on when a crisis arose.

Harry and Sirius were laughing back to the table and Harry reached out, snagging Lily's hand. "Dance with me!" he laughed. "I think I wore out Sirius."

Lily stumbled to her feet as Harry pulled her away from the table. "Oh, Harry, I really couldn't…" she tried but the Boy-Who-Refused-To-Die just laughed.

"Of course you can. Hell, even _I_ can dance. And trust me… that's a miracle." Harry proved his words by sending Lily spinning. The music had switched to something move traditional and on the dance floor couples paired off for a more formal dance.

Lily was laughing as she stopped spinning. Then she raised her eyes and locked her emeralds with his. "How do I know you?"

"I _am_ a lot like James," Harry spoke after a moment. His mind was whirling, and he tried subtly to roll out the kink in his shoulders as Lily studied him.

"You're your own person, Harry. Your looks have nothing to do with it." And through her own wondering, she never saw the amazed admiration that Harry quickly hid from his eyes.

"Thank you," Harry finally said. He hesitated again, eyes searching over Lily's shoulder. "It doesn't mater that you think you know me, Lily." He whispered. "What matters is that we know each other. And I had best return you to your boyfriend." Harry handed her off with a small smile before walking back to their table, the energetic boy no longer present.

Sirius glanced up from his conversation with Peter and frowned. He bolted from his seat, and took Harry's hand, dragging the boy behind him as he pushed their way through the crowd in the Great Hall.

Harry took a deep breath of the clean night air as he and Sirius left the school. "I love the night at Hogwarts." Spinning under the moon that was so bright you'd think it was full, Harry smiled. Harry stopped moving and turned his illuminated emerald eyes to Sirius. "Dance with me? Under the stars?"

"There are stars inside," Sirius said even as he took Harry's outstretched hand. As they danced, a slower waltz than was going on inside, neither was aware they had an audience.

Hidden in the shadows a female grinned, bringing the camera around her neck to her eyes and taking a picture. "Merlin, they are so sweet," she smiled as her eyes lingered on them. "They're perfect together."

Her companion sneered, "They're pathetic. Sap and romance, as if that will mean anything. They'll be separated, torn apart, and they'll forget each other." He grinned at his companion, eyes dark with something she couldn't recognize. Something she didn't want to recognize.

"You're such a bastard, McNeill." The girl glared darkly, hatred burning in her eyes. "You wouldn't know love if it came up and bit you in the arse."

"Such sweet words, Ashley," he smirked, purposely using her first name and smirking at the glare she gave him.

Ashley snarled, jerking away from him and stepping towards the school doors. McNeill reached out and snagged her sweater. Ashley whirled around, anger still burning in her eyes and as if that was a form of magic, Terrance nearly stepped back. But he held his ground and grinned, bringing her hand to his lips. She reared back, taking her hand with her and neither were all that surprised when her palm ended up across his cheek.

"Don't _ever_ touch me."

The dark grin once again returned to McNeill's face, "You really don't have a choice in the matter, now, do you?"

"I will get out of it." Her voice was low, dark, and almost deathly dangerous. Such an unreal contrast that McNeill only smirked.

"You really won't, Ash. Trust me. There's no way."

Terrance watched Ashley run back to the school, her steps slowing and relaxing the closer she got as she forced her normal calm and happy persona back into place. But she looked back, her eyes lingering on the dancing couple for a moment. Then they turned to Terrance. And the hatred was still there.

Terrance smirked as she walked into the school, before he followed her. He spared a glare at the couple, and swore to himself that Harry would pay for what he did, and what he let his pet do. Touching the scar on his chest he thought of the blond ice prince who took after his father in everything but loyalties.

Unable to resist, Terrance looked back at the couple, and wondered what the pretty little boyfriend would do if Draco appeared to steal the hero's attention.

James grinned at Lily as she kept her head on his shoulder. Never in his wildest imaginations (and trust him, he had some crazy ones) had he though she'd actually be with him. And now, it had been more then half a year, and it didn't look like they'd be breaking up anytime soon.

"I'm crazy in love with you," he said smiling at her. Lily looked up and grinned, a slight flush to her cheeks.

"It is so weird that I don't mind hearing that. How long ago was it that I was kicking your arse?" Lily cocked an eyebrow as James sneered.

"More like I let you; it's not nice to pick on a girl, you know."

"Sure, love, whatever you need to tell yourself to help you sleep at night."

"I just need you to help me sleep," James schmoozed and Lily glared at him.

"Not happening. There is no way I am sleeping in your dorm."

James pouted, widening his big blue eyes and blinking sadly. "Why noooott?" he asked and Lily groaned, rolling her eyes.

"I can give you four reasons, and call them your dormmates."

James laughed and hugged her tightly as the song changed. "Well," he said. "We do have our own dorm," he reminded her and Lily sighed.

"And won't that be suspicious? They've gotten used to having you in their dorm."

James pouted and Lily laughed. She leaned over and kissed him soundly. Breaking away, James raised an eyebrow as he saw Sirius and Harry walking into the Great Hall. His best friend and his future son settled into their seats at their table.

"You know," Sirius murmured in Harry's ear. "You never did show me that picture of your rock star."

Harry grinned at Sirius. "I've got the pictures in my trunk. You can see them later." Harry batted away Sirius hand, which was twirling the necklace around Harry's neck.

"Or, we could see them now," Sirius said and Harry blushed. Sirius reached up, cradling Harry's neck and dragging his face up for a kiss.

Harry succumbed momentarily, before pulling away. "You know what they'll think if we take off now," he pointed out and Sirius wondered just _where_ Harry got his modesty from, because he didn't inherit it from his parents.

"They'll think it anyway, lover," Sirius grinned at Harry saucily and the younger man blushed as he looked around the Hall.

"Yeah, I know. They can't keep their tongues from wagging about others." Harry shifted uncomfortably and Sirius frowned, tilting his head and pinning Harry with his eyes.

"You're actually really uncomfortable about people talking about your sex life, aren't you?"

Harry tore his eyes away, shrugging seemingly carelessly. "I'd rather people didn't discuss me _en masse_… they come up with some really strange shit."

To end the conversation, Harry turned his attention towards his parents. He reached for his goblet of punch and smirked cheekily at Sirius. "They're absolutely adorable, aren't they?" He asked rhetorically, toasting his goblet at his dancing parents.

"Strange to think," Sirius agreed, cooperating with the shift in conversation. "A year ago, she wouldn't have given him the time of day."

"What changed?" Harry asked, the question escaping his wavering control.

Sirius frowned as he glanced at Harry. _Why wouldn't he know?_

"No one really knows," the male voice wasn't Sirius' and Harry turned. It was the blond from earlier; Justin.

"Oh?" Harry asked.

Justin slid into James' seat across from the couple. "Yeah, it's an on going dilemma. That Lily gave in, I mean. Some think your boy, James," he nodded at Sirius, "brainwashed her. All we know is that after Easter break, they were… friends." Justin's voice echoed the disbelief he had felt when it happened. "Then the bets intensified. Who, what, where, when, and more importantly, _why_!"

Justin grinned. "The way I see it, James must have saved her life over last Easter. Lily wanted to repay him. Since they spent so much time together, she gradually fell in love with him until she had no choice but to succumb and admit to it. They've been together ever since."

Justin grinned, seemingly pleased with his own story.

"What a ridiculous sentiment." The voice was barely above a whisper, and Harry watched as Justin's eyes darkened and he replaced the pleased grin with a cocky smirk.

"Brian," he whispered and turned his head to grin at the older male. "Couldn't stay away." It wasn't a question.

"Yeah. Right." Brian eyed Justin, a sneer on his face. The eighteen-year-old just grinned as Brian strolled away and headed for the hunky brunette at the staff table.

"He loves me," Justin said and snorted in disbelief.

"He knows Professor Bruckner?" Harry asked as he recognized the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor.

"Professor Bruckner's lover," Sirius nodded at the shorter brunette who was glaring up at Brian. "Is Brian's best mate."

"How," Harry asked. "Do you know this?"

Justin and Sirius exchanged a look and Harry narrowed his eyes on his boyfriend. "Siri?" Harry implored.

"It's a long story, love." Harry eyed them and sighed. He turned to look at Brian again, who had kissed Bruckner's partner. Harry caught Justin's sigh out of his peripherals.

Harry glanced at Sirius, who just smiled at him. Draining his goblet he stood up and held out his hands. He took Justin's hand and smiled. "Let's dance."

Justin glanced at Sirius and the black haired boy waved his hand, smiling.

And as the music picked up, Harry glanced at Brian and smirked. The older man was glaring at him. He leaned down and kissed Justin's cheek.

"You're boyfriend's jealous."

"Not my boyfriend," Justin mumbled, but his eyes lingered on Brian.

"Maybe," Harry grinned. "But he's possessive of you. Wants to rip my throat out."

"You're delusional." Justin decided and Harry laughed.

"You don't see it, do you? He knows he could have almost anyone here, but he wants you."

"He doesn't want to want me, I know that too," Justin said.

"True," Harry glanced at Brian and winced. The older man was very graphically considering what to do to him for touching his toy. "He's very attractive." Tall and dark, Brian had a cockiness that rivaled Sirius' and his obvious self-confidence was attractive.

"Stunningly so," Justin agreed. "And he's going to look like that forever. Young and beautiful." Shaking his head, he changed the subject. "So, you're the one that got our playboy to stop fucking half of Hogwarts."

"Well… uh."

"You must have fun with him," Justin grinned. "God knows I would. There are times he's even more attractive than Brian. Though I'm usually _very_ drunk when that happens."

"Huh," was all Harry said. And Justin froze. He took in Harry, the tilted head, curious eyes and frowned.

"You have, haven't you?"

"Well, ahhh…"

"Oh. My. God. Merlin, Harry, I'm so sorry. I thought you had…well, hell, why haven't you?"

"Well… umm…" Incoherence was not something Harry was usually used to but he couldn't seem to come up with an answer for Justin.

"_You_ haven't, have you?" And Justin wasn't one to mince words, so he had no problem voicing his own thoughts. "Harry, why are you so shy about sex?"

And for some reason, Harry felt compelled to tell the blond most of the truth.

"I've been really busy for most of my life. Never really had the time for that stuff. 'Til about a year ago. That's also about when I realized I preferred guys. But, still, busy with life. Then, I moved here. People have always had me in one scandal or another. I've spent most of my life listening to rumors about myself and trying to ignore them. It gets tiring. Annoying."

"And now, everyone in school thinks you're shagging our Playboy."

"Not that I mind. They can think what they want. I just don't want them discussing it."

Justin eyed Harry with a light grin. "Let me tell you something. Living your life as others would want isn't worth it. You won't get pleasure out of that. So do what you want from time to time, and anyone who loves you won't mind."

"Are you sure you're a Gryffindor? You sound more like a hedonist." Harry mused allowed and Justin threw his head back and laughed. Harry could feel a pair of eyes burning into him that didn't belong to Sirius, and he turned his head only to come face to face with a none-to-pleased Brian Kinney.

"Fuck off." The man snarled and Harry was all to happy to oblige. With an exaggerated bow, and a mischievous wink at Justin, Harry let go of the other boy and stepped back.

"Have fun," Harry mouthed to Justin, who grinned and threw his arms around Brian.

Harry walked back to Sirius, a smile on his face. "What do you think shocks them more," he asked. "Us or them?"

Sirius laughed as he caught sight of the blond haired eighteen-year-old making out with his twenty-nine-year-old not-boyfriend. "Beats me," Sirius said. "Justin's been in love with Brian for a while now. But whenever he comes around to visit Professor Ben and Michael he totally ignores Justin."

"God," a voice grumbled, and Sammy Winchester appeared behind them, glaring at Brian and Justin. 

"You'd think, after what that jerk puts him through, Just would get over him." Sammy shook his head and grinned at Sirius.

"The punch this year tastes a little more… fun, then last year's. I'd love to thank who ever is responsible for it."

Sirius smirked. "I'm sure said person is aware of your gratitude, Sammy."

"Of course," Sammy agreed. He looked back at Justin and Brian and sighed.

_He's going to get hurt again,_ Sammy thought with a mental sigh.

Harry glanced at Justin and wondered if he was the only one that could see how completely smitten –however unwillingly – Brian was with the blond.

"Well," the Chaser grinned at Harry and Sirius. "I hope you've been having a good night?"

"Absolutely," Harry agreed and recognized another song that started playing. He was really going to have to have a talk with James about going through his things.

"Sorry, Sammy," Harry said as he stood up. "But I'd like to dance with my boyfriend."

Sammy shook his head, his eyes laughing as he stepped back and let the two wizards head to the dance floor. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do," he snickered and Harry cast him a look.

"_Is_ there anything you wouldn't do?" he asked and the Chaser laughed, grinning wildly.

"Barely, so you're bound to have a lot of fun."

"Ain't that the truth," Harry agreed, thinking of Justin's earlier words.

The blond had several points. And – quick glance at Justin and Brian – he certainly appeared to enjoy following his own advice. And Harry recognized the Gryffindor bravery in that.

Ashley looked away from her date for the evening, a truly boring lad to be sure, and her eyes softened on Sirius and Harry in each other's arms. It made her heart melt and she lifted her camera to her eyes, catching the image that would last a lifetime. Merlin, how she wished she could have that. Instead…

Her eyes darkened on the Slytherin table, pure hatred burning her vision.

OoOoO

The hours wore on and the energized dancing continued into the morning. Several were sure it was because of the punch. The younger students went to bed, and the older ones spread apart. Some of them going to party some more with their friends, others to sleep. Professors wandered in and out, taking turns supervising the diminishing crowd as the night wore into morning.

Hermione and Remus barely left the dance floor, until finally succumbing to exhaustion and bidding everyone good night. They walked up to their common room and Remus paused at the steps that lead to the girls' dorm.

The pause between them was awkward, and Hermione worried her bottom lip before stepping forward and placing her lips on Remus'. "Thank you for the lovely evening," she said and Remus smiled at her. He took her hand, kissing her palm.

"I'll see you in the morning, then?"

"Absolutely."

Remus watched as she walked up the stairs before he wandered back to his own dorm room. He opened the door and glanced at James' back (though, in the dark it could have been Harry's), as he was leaning over Sirius' bed.

"Jamie?" he asked, and the black-haired boy glanced up, smiling.

"Hey, Moons," he whispered and Remus cocked an eyebrow. James smirked, and pointed to Sirius' bed. 

"They're completely unconscious. It's kind of cute."

Remus glanced at the bed, and smiled. Harry and Sirius were passed out, still in their clothes from earlier. "Think we should change them?" Remus asked and James sighed, nodding to the pile of clothes beside him.

"I was working on it when you came in. You can change Sirius."

James pulled off Harry's last shoe and then his socks. He muttered a spell to make Harry's feet smell like roses as Remus did the same to Sirius. "Jamie?" Remus asked. "Wanna get Pad's belt for me?" Remus asked, nodding to the silver studs.

"Sure mate." James reached over his son and undid the belt, sliding it free and tossing it on top of Harry's pants. He grabbed Harry's pajama bottoms and forced the kid into them. "Merlin, what is with all the clothes?" James muttered as he pulled off Harry's shirt. And then he froze, eyes locked on the necklace around Harry's neck.

"Hell," James whispered. Remus glanced up, tilting his head and recognized the necklace Harry wore.

"Wow," the werewolf whispered as he forced Sirius' unconscious body into his pajamas. "He's really in love with Harry."

"Yeah," James whispered, and tried to tell his gut to stop its insistent knotting. James fingered the 'P' he'd given Sirius that currently lay around his son's neck. "It makes sense, doesn't it?" James whispered. He shoved Harry's shirt on and let the kid fall back to the bed, smiling as he curled into Sirius, and his friend around Harry.

"I think it's time for bed, huh?" James asked and Remus nodded, eyes moving away from the sleeping couple.

"Yeah, I'd say so." Remus got into his own night clothes and climbed into his bed. "Hey, Prongs?"

"S'up, Moons?"

"What did you ever do with that potion?"

"What potion?" James stuck his head between his bed curtains. "You mean the one we made in the Heads' Room?"

"Yes, that one."

James shrugged. "I went back later, bottled it. It's actually sitting in my trunk right now. I was going to bring it home. Bit of a disappointment that it didn't do anything, actually."

"Yeah," Remus said. "I guess you're right. Night, Prongs."

"Night, Moons."

And Moony's last thought before he fell asleep was that the potion was the same colour as Harry's eyes.

_... TBC ..._

_Reviews: Where I respond to all my anonymous reviews since these guys either a) don't have an account or b) don't want people to know the link to their account or c) are to lazy to sign in... repeatedly... though, considering the anonymous reviewers are usually the same ones, I'm considering option A... I hate typo's... I put C the first time, and read someones review, and was like, What the fuck? So I went back and read it and it needed to be changed. _

_HarrySirius – Thank you. MEAhahah! Yeah, Dan and Gary didn't do a good job of hiding it._

_Delu - Thanks. :P_

_ElizaHPFAN - I'm sure I got that right -looks at name thoughtfully- I can't find your review in my email, but I remember what it said... ahh, there is plotty stuff in this chapter (a bit anyway) and there shall be more coming. I'm glad you love the story._

_Nevaeh Black - I was steaking my hair with the blue stuff, and I thought, "dude, Harry so totally needs to do that. It'd be hot." and so, Harry has green in his hair, till he washes it out. Oh, don't worry, feel free to worshipfullly rant about me whenever, I have no shame. ... well, most of the time. :D_

_Disclaimer: I don't own any of the recognizable Harry Potter characters, though I do own Ashley and Terrance. All other HP characters belong to JKR. Also, Justin, Daphney, Brian, Michael, and Professor Bruckner belong to Cowlip and Queer as Folk I'm just using them because I'm completely obsessed. Sammy Winchester I own all rights to, Eric Kripke can kiss my ass, but Sammy is MINE! (or, well, you know, Supernaturals… prompt to whoever picked up on that in the Quidditch Match.)_

_Rambles – I am so sick of looking at this chapter, you have no idea… so yes, it's shit, but it's done. Hey, so I've been writing Drabbles and if anyone has any prompts, something they'd love to see played out, let me know in your reviews. I'll see what I can do._

_HAPPY CHRISTMAS!_

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight._


	23. Chapter 23

_Rambles – Hiya darlins. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and the next. Lord knows I have. Reviews are absolutely lovely. Also, I went back and the scene with Harry and Justin was changed slightly, because the lovely beta pointed out it didn't flow right. Gotta love her. And, I finally changed the French in chapter 12, and fixed all the Alicia/Alice mistakes in the story. So, read, enjoy (hopefully) and leave me a very detailed review of all the things that you absolutely loved because I'm a huge review-whore. _

**Time Again**

**Lady Starlight so kiss my ass**

**Chapter Twenty Three.**

Morning came too quickly on the first day of the holidays. It snuck up and attacked the slumbering students, many of whom had been up all night doing last-minute packing. 

That was not exactly the case for one of the two seventh-year boys' dorms in Gryffindor tower. And by not exactly, I mean that three of the five occupants were wide awake while the other two slumbered, completely unaware of the smirks being shared.

"You got it, Wormtail?" Prongs asked, sly smile on his face.

"Y-yes," Warmtail stuttered. He held the bucket. Unsuccessfully willing his hands to be as steady as James'.

He glanced at the sleeping couple, and kind of wanted to run away. But James would never let him live it down if he did. Remus flicked his wand out and levitated the bucket over the bed.

"So," James asked conversationally. "Who do you think they will kill first?"

"We'll have to find out, won't we, Prongs?" Remus asked, smirking.

"You ready, Moony?""

Peter watched as Harry shifted in his sleep, Sirius' arm pulled away and the dog mumbled incoherently. He watched at the bucket tipped in mid-air, over the sleeping couple. And he froze, because, because before even the first drop of water hit them, Harry's emerald eyes snapped opened, darkly.

"BLEEDING HELL!" Sirius snarled; sitting up, his hair was soaking wet and his sapphire eyes instantly sought out James. His wand moved from under his pillow to in his hand to before anyone really saw it. 

James was sent flying back and dark brown antlers popped out of his head, a reminder of Prongs that had Harry snickering.

"Well," Remus said. "Guess that answers that."

Harry's eyes were bright with amusement, and Peter could almost pretend he'd imagined the deadly glare.

"Nice antlers, Prongs," Harry sneered and James smirked.

"You like 'em, little boy?" Prongs asked as he whipped out his wand and jinxed Harry with a matching set.

Remus tried to use the distraction to back slowly – or not so slowly as was the case – out of the Dorm. Then three wands were pointed at him.

"I don't think so, Wolfie," Harry said. "I know that little spellwork was yours."

Remus was too slow in casting the _protego_ against the three spells. He ended up with a pair of antlers himself, sitting on a shock of green hair and and to top it off, he had a bright – and I mean really, really bright – red nose.

"There you go, Remus," Harry smirked. "Sorry, guess that should be Rudolph."

Remus reached up to touch his antlers, cursing mentally. Well, at least he was already dressed, so that wouldn't be a problem.

"So," James asked, staring down at the laughing Sirius. "How long did you make them last?"

The grin on Sirius' face was lightning-quick, and James almost wanted to turn white at the mere wickedness of it. 

"Oh, well, I always was curious what your mother's reaction would be to her horny son."

James face had gone so white, so fast, that Harry hadn't had time to blink before his young father was shrieking.

"SIRIUS ORION BLACK! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" James took a deep breath, and then started shaking. "Oh, Merlin, oh, Merlin. She is going to skin me. She's going to hang me above the fireplace. Show me off to all her friends." James eyes' widened with fear. "HOW COULD YOU! YOU SAW WHAT SHE DID LAST SUMMER!"

As James hyperventilated Sirius picked up his clothing and closed the curtains around his bed.

"All the sudden, I'm not so sure I want to meet Mrs. Potter," Harry murmured and Sirius laughed, reaching for Harry's nightshirt. Pulling it over his boyfriend's head Sirius grinned, raking his eyes over Harry, a frown gracing his features when he spotted several small scars that the waist of his school pants usually covered. Unfortunately, his pajamas rode too low to conceal them. 

Or the Tat---

Sirius raised his eyes to Harry's, a pout on his face. "How'd you get those?"

There was no way he could tell the young man Lucius Malfoy would give him those in twenty odd years, without said young man doing some serious (yes he thought that) damage to the current Lucius Malfoy.

"Quidditch," Harry whispered and Sirius narrowed his eyes. They both knew he didn't believe it. Harry had a brief flash of Sirius' hot breath and his whispered _"Don't ever lie to me," _from right after he'd found out the truth. And his stomach churned, because really, he didn't want to lie to Sirius, but what else could he do? The truth wasn't really an option.

Sirius' eyes fell flat, and they both knew Harry was lying. The fingers caressed Harry's side. Both vaguely head James yell at them, they ignored it. Sirius leaned over, pressing his lips to Harry's.

"I wish you could tell me the truth," he whispered so quietly that Harry feared he'd heard wrong. Harry leaned foreword, wrapping his arms around Sirius and burying his head in the older boy's neck.

"GODDAMNIT! WILL YOU HURRY UP AND CHANGE YOUR CLOTHES SO THAT WE CAN CATCH THE TRAIN?"

Harry giggled at James' outburst and slid on his T-Shirt. Sirius didn't bother looking away as the shirt dropped over his chest, and Harry smirked at the obvious lust oozing off his boyfriend. Picking up his pajama shirt he chucked it at Sirius' head before finishing getting changed.

Sirius pouted as he yanked his shirt off. He changed quickly, noting with some amusement that Harry couldn't take his eyes away any more than he couldn't stop the blush that stained his cheeks. Sirius picked up their pajamas and ducked through his curtains to put their clothes in their trunks. He'd barely stepped away when Harry reached through and pulled him back. 

James groaned in disgust. "What are you, a couple of horny teenagers?"

Remus looked over from his trunk, where he'd been repacking, and cocked an eyebrow at James. 

"Don 't answer that," Prongs muttered.

Their dorm door banged open and a pissed-off brunette stormed in. "HARRY! SIRIUS! YOU GET OUT OF THAT BED AND LEAVE EACH OTHER ALONE UNTIL WE GET TO THE POTTERS'!" She stormed to the bed, ripped open the curtains and glared at the young couple. "If you make us late, so help me God, you'll WISH IT WAS VOLDEMORT KILLING YOU!"

Harry groaned, rubbing his head. Her verbal screech had been echoed by a mental one, and Harry wasn't sure which was worse. Actually, Peter's terrified squeak at 'Voldemort' was worse. God, Harry was sick of people fearing a bloody name.

"You know, love," he tried. "I can't always be there when you screech. There are other things I'd rather be doing."

"Oh, I know what you'd rather be doing Harry P-Granger! That still gives you no right to ignore me!"

"It's not like you were in any danger," Harry tried, wanting to shake at the disturbed feeling at being called Granger. _Blah._

Lily glanced at them from the door, and Harry sighed, beckoning her in as well. "You have to forgive my sister, Lily, she's a bit of a drama queen."

"I'll drama queen you," Hermione hissed, glaring at Harry, who effectively ignored her.

"She's not used to sharing," Harry said and Hermione reached up and smacked him upside the head. Hard. Harry pouted at her, but Hermione only continued to glare.

"Finish getting packed, brush your teeth, and then we are going to have breakfast." Neither male moved and Hermione raised on deadly eyebrow. "Move." They bolted for the bathroom.

Hermione sighed, picking up the abandoned clothes and fishing out her keys to Harry's trunk. Locking it when she was done, she sat on his bed with a huff. James stepped away, keeping several beds, and Lily, between the two of them. Peter had busied himself with his own belongings, having remembered that he had Transfiguration homework to do over Christmas.

Remus on the other hand, took a tentative step towards Hermione, and the brunette looked up and grinned, her eyes bright with mirth. Remus let out a breath and dropped himself beside her on Harry's bed. "Excited for the holiday's?" he asked and Hermione beamed at him.

"Yeah, I can't wait. I love school, but there needs to be time to relax."

"Too true," Remus agreed.

Sirius and Harry came out of the bathroom bantering, and froze when they saw Hermione. The brunette eyed the black haired couple and stood, walking towards the dorms door.

"She's scary," Sirius muttered in Harry's ear. The young hero laughed. 

"You have no idea," he said. When they snickered Hermione turned and glared at them. 

Breakfast was a loud event, despite the fact that several students were missing – probably still packing, or sleeping, according to Hermione. They ate quickly, their own conversation stilted under Hermione's careful eyes. The young woman snatched their plates away before they were finished and Sirius glared at Hermione for daring to take away his food. Hermione glared back. Darker.

The couple trudged after her, heads lowered like obedient puppies.

They boarded one of the not-so-horseless carriages and Hermione eyed the Thresals nervously. She wasn't quite comfortable with the idea of them, let alone seeing them. And knowing the reasons why she could see them.

Sammy jumped into the carriage with them, grinning hugely as he closed the door. "So," the brunette said. "Hot plans at the Potters?"

"Looks like," James admitted, then reached up to touch his antlers, glaring at Sirius. Harry smirked, touching his own. He'd take off to the bathroom once they got on the train, to get rid of his. 

"You'll be coming for New Years, right?" James asked and Sammy frowned. James narrowed his eyes.

"What's your excuse this time, Winchester? I do believe last year it was your brother who was sick, the year before that, your Aunt May, who sounds suspiciously like Spiderman's Aunt, by the way, was visiting."

Sammy bit his lip, looking outside. Maybe jumping in their carriage had been a bad idea. "I'm not sure, James. I can try, but..."

"Right, well, if your brother puts up a fight, tell him to fuck off and come with. I'm sure your Dad won't mind if Dean is there as well."

"We'll see," Sammy said. "So, where did the prank start, guys?" He asked, eying the three sets of antlers.

"HIM!" James, Remus, Sirius and Harry said, pointing to James. James frowned, looking at his traitorous finger, before turning it around and pointing at Sirius. Sammy snickered, shaking his head.

"I only cast the first jinx," Sirius defended. "YOU'RE the one who decided and ice bath was the best way to wake us up in the morning."

"Well, if you didn't insist on sleeping in every morning, maybe I wouldn't go to such extremes to wake you up," James argued.

"Well," Sirius sneered. "A simple 'Hey, Pads! Time to get up, mate,' would work more effectively, and wouldn't leave you cursed."

"Most of the time you turn around and jinx me anyway! I was making the consequences worthwhile!"

"There are other ways than water!"

"What are you, a bleeding CAT?"

"PRONGS!" Remus yelped, his eyes widening as Sirius glared dangerously.

"A CAT? A cat you say? A freaking CAT? I'm no cat, boy, you'd best remember that."

"No, you're just a horn dog, emphasis on the DOG," James glared back.

Sammy blinked several times as the argument degraded into name-calling, He had witnessed a few fights like this, and apparently, from the disinterest of the others, so had they.

Remus had his nose buried in a book, muttering as he rubbed his scarily red nose. Harry, taking pity on the wolf, pulled out his wand and muttered a counter. Remus thanked him and Harry smiled in return. James however, broke from his litany of 'your momma' jokes with Sirius to whine.

"It was a bit much, Prongs," Harry muttered and in the corner he could sense Peter stiffen. Peter really didn't like Harry's place in the group. He didn't like how James and Sirius and the level-headed _Remus_ were so willing to see his side of it, were eager to take his advice and talk to him about everything from pranks, to the war against the Dark Lord.

And some of Harry's opinions, it almost sounded like he knew what he was talking about, like maybe he'd gone up against the Dark Lord. But that was impossible, because no one went up against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and lived. It simply wasn't done. Unless your name was Albus Dumbledore and you were Headmaster of Hogwarts. Harry wasn't either of those things. Let alone both.

Watching as Sirius ran his fingers through Harry's hair, a smile on his face, as Hermione scowled at them, and they ignored her to pick on James, he wondered when he was replaced and how it had happened without anyone noticing.

Remus glanced up, and met Peter's eyes, a concerned smile on his face and the rat smiled back, the one full of interest and amusement that he'd learned to master in the five months that Harry and Hermione and shown up and changed his world.

Peter glanced over to another carriage and his eyes locked on a pair of gray ones. The eyes smiled at Peter, before resting on Harry, fury settling in them. McNeill really hated Harry, and Peter kind of wanted to ask why.

Hermione's growl broke through his train of thought, and Peter turned to watch the girl smack Harry upside the head, glaring at him, and Sirius. "What," she drawled, "did I say about staying away from each other?"

"Not to do it?" Harry asked.

"On pain of death," Sirius agreed.

"Somehow," Sammy said. "I'm not so sure that's what she said."

The carriage stopped and the group got out to pile into the train, searching out a compartment. Sammy then said, "Happy Christmas," and left to find Alicia, Frank, Ashley and Justin and Daphne.

Claiming the last compartment for their own, they put their trunks away. Harry excused himself to go to the bathroom. Standing in front of the mirror Harry stared at his reflection, focusing on his antlers. He centered his magic, and moved them to the top of his head, closing his eyes he felt his own magic dissolve James' prank. When he opened his eyes again, the antlers were gone, and Sirius was standing behind him, mouth opened. 

"You're going to have to explain that, you know," Sirius' voice was barely above a whisper, his eyes glazed with shock.

Harry bit his lip, and nodded. "Sure," he said and Sirius glanced up, shocked. He hadn't actually thought Harry would be willing to supply the information. "Later tonight at the Potters, alright?" Harry focused his magic, letting himself feel the magic course back through his body and settle. He opened his eyes and smiled at Sirius, who was biting his lip and staring at Harry.

"Siri?" Harry asked and Sirius smiled at him.

"You really need to show me how to do that." Harry blushed, smiling lightly at his eager boyfriend.

"No problem," Harry said. He wrapped his arms around Sirius and could hear Hermione's sharp cough in his head. DAMNIT! He needed to remember to block her out. Though, this morning proved that that was a bad idea.

Harry growled slightly, and Sirius raised an eyebrow. "I almost want to know about that, as well."

"That's a bit harder to explain," Harry admitted and Sirius smiled. He leaned foreword and kissed Harry, before unlocking the bathroom door and strolling out, pulling Harry with him.

When they entered their compartment, James glared at Harry's lack of antlers. "NOT FAIR!" he whined. "How'd you get rid of them?"

"Magic," Harry grinned at the death glare.

The train ride finally ended with them all reaching King's Cross. They pulled their luggage free with them as they left the train. Harry and Hermione watched as James scanned the crowed of parents for his mother, tentatively touching the antlers that were still sitting on his head. She was going to axe-murder him.

"MOM!" He called and six random heads turned in his direction. James shrugged, grinning. "It seemed like a good idea."

"Sure it did," Remus sighed, shaking his head. He glanced up and smiled when he spotted Peter's mum. "Wormtail, your mum's over there, she's standing with my mum."

Peter spotted the two women, and smiled. "Well, Happy Christmas, see you in a few weeks," he said.

"Yup," Sirius agreed. "Have a good trip."

"And he does mean trip," James agreed, smiling lightly as Sirius whacked him upside the head. 

"Oh, you boys," Lily groaned. "Ignore them, Peter, and be careful."

"Have fun in Luxembourg," Hermione said to Peter while she walked towards Remus.

"Happy Christmas," Harry agreed, eying his sister suspiciously as she hugged Remus.

"Happy Christmas, Remus," Hermione whispered, kissing his cheek. Remus smiled at her softly.

"See you tomorrow," he agreed, kissing her quickly, casting a nervous look at Harry.

"AWWWW!" Sirius cheered. "What a touching moment!"

"Sirius!" Harry warned, but it was too late. Sirius jumped from where he was standing, launching himself as Remus. He wrapped his arms around the wolf and sobbed ridiculously. 

"Have a happy Christmas, Remy, I'll miss you soooooooooooo much I won't know what to do with myself. Mayhap, I'll take to knitting while you're not there. Something so boring that will make me miss you even more in the twenty four hours that I won't see you!" Sirius placed a smacking kiss on Remus' lips while he wailed. "Don't forget me while you're gone!"

Harry stepped forward, he snagged a lock of hair and pulled the taller boy down. "Bad puppy," he said sternly. "Your lips stay off Remus."

"Okay," Sirius agreed when Harry let go, then he reached over and kissed his best friend, much to Harry's annoyance. "Well," Sirius said when he let go of James, who was too busy laughing to pay them attention. "It's not Remus."

"Uh huh," Harry pouted, unimpressed.

Sirius reached over, laughing. He tugged Harry up close and personal, kissing him more thoroughly than the playful kisses he'd given both his friends. "You should have said," he whispered against Harry's lips. "That I'm only allowed to kiss you."

"Hmm," the happy murmur escaping Harry. "That's the one," he wrapped his arms around Sirius' neck, standing on his toes to level their faces.

"WAAHOOO! Go Harry!" Justin Taylor's voice shouted from the distance, and Harry flipped him off, hoping that he saw it.

"Hem, hem," broke through Harry's concentration, and the cough had Harry's bones freezing and moving in overdrive all at once. He flew away from Sirius, eyes darting around for the familiar lady. 

But he didn't see her. At least, he thought as he took in a young woman dressed head to toe in pink, not the her who tried to ruin his life. Sirius raised an eyebrow, curious about Harry's discomfort.

"That is inappropriate behavior in a public setting, _gentlemen_," she stated and Harry immediately knew it was more than the public setting she disapproved of.

"Yes, Professor Umbridge, ma'am, sir, ma'am," he hurried, in reflex and glanced at the faded scar on his hand, all the reminder he needed.

"_Excuse me_ ?" The younger Umbridge demanded in her shrill voice, which was the same one that had haunted his nightmares in fifth year (along with Voldemort, of course.)

"I said, I'm terribly sorry, ma'am," he tried to cover.

Umbridge walked past him, looking for one of the students, sparing him no more of her very valuable attention.

"Dungbitch," Harry muttered, remembering one of her many endearing nicknames from their fifth year and beyond. The students of Hogwrts, year 1997 still had nightmares about her coming back from the dead to teach them.

He glanced behind him to see the curious stares of his friends, and the knowing one on Hermione's. "She reminded me of one of my... more horrible Defence Professors. Scary lady."

"Obsessive as well," Hermione agreed. 

"She's horrid," Lily said to their shock. "No respectable woman in her right mind would wear that much pink. It's a fashion disaster, I learned that much from Matilda at least." Hermione and Harry both cracked grins.

After the giggling was done, Remus re-spotted his Mum and Peter's, leaving their friends. Lily saw her Dad and headed over there alone, after James balked at the thought of talking to him. Once was more than enough, thank you very much.

"Guess that makes it just us, mates," James said, reaching up to touch his antlers. They were gone. He whipped around to stare at Sirius, who just laughed.

"Do you honestly think I would ever be the reason you end up murdered? Think again, mate." Behind their backs, Hermione and Harry exchanged a brief look. A knowing one.

"James Potter!" James jolted, a smile taking over his face.

"Mum!" he hollered back. A tall blonde raced over, smiling brightly. She wrapped her arms around James and he hugged her back, completely unembarrassed. The two let go of each other, both beaming.

"I hope you haven't been waiting too long," she said. "I had some trouble finding a place to park."

"It's no problem to wait for a beautiful lady, Mumma Potter," the grin on Sirius' face was contagious, and the charm just poured out of him. Mrs. Potter eyed him dubiously, and shook her head.

"It's good to have you back, Sirius. If only because you keep things interesting."

"Hey!" James whined. "What about me?"

"What about you?" Mrs. Potter said, and Sirius laughed. "Now, boys, find some manners and introduce me."

"Right," James said. "Mum, this is Harry and Hermione Granger. Mates, this is my mum, Vivian Potter."

"Pleased to meet you," Vivian said.

"Pleasure's mine," Harry flashed a grin and frowned when Vivian froze, her eyes locked on him.

"Are you... nah, never mind," she decided. "Couldn't be." She waved her hand carelessly and walked with them out of the station. "So, Sirius, I parked beside this beautiful car. I hope it's still there so that you can see it.."

"Aww! Mumma Potter," Sirius cheered. "You know the way to my heart is-"

"Through your stomach?" James guessed.

"Through your hair?" Vivian questioned.

"Through your pants," Hermione stated and Sirius pouted. He turned to look at Harry, eyes wide and playfully damp.

"Aren't you going to defend me against their cruel words?"

"Why would I?" Harry asked, "when they're right?"

"You're mean! You're all heartless and cruel. Why I even put up with you when all I get is insulted, I'll never know. I should leave now, never to return, and then you'd know what it's like to – Holy Merlin, nice car."

"Holy Merlin," Harry countered. "Nice driver."

When Sirius saw Harry's grin, the sudden tug in his gut loosened. If only a little.

"Nice brother you got there, Sammy," Sirius called out. Sammy slammed the black of the black car, and got a "Hey! That's my baby you're abusing" from his brother.

"Shut up, Dean."

"Bitch," Dean muttered, glaring at Sammy. Sammy grinned, the happy smile lighting up his face.

"Jerk. Just drive us home."

"See you on New Years!" James called out and saw Sammy glare at him, and Dean shift in his seat to stare inquisitively.

"Happy Christmas!" Sammy called back, before he rounded on his brother and reached for the tape deck. His hand was slapped away immediately.

Vivian opened the boot of her car and helped the teenagers put their trunks in. When they were on the road, she finally started talking.

"So, each of you will have your own room to stay in," she said to Harry and Hermione. "And I'm going to assume that you are sleeping in your own beds, do you understand?" she said, her question directed at Sirius and Harry, who both nodded.

Harry kicked his legs over Sirius', smiling at his boyfriend as he rested his head on Sirius' shoulder. They understood, completely. 

_...TBC..._

_Mattieau – Thanks for the note on the French, I finally went back and changed it. :D I'm glad you are enjoying my fic._

_ElizaHPFAN – Hehe, I just plotted out some more of this fic. I hope you like what I deiced (after I post it) actually, I hope everyone likes how it turned out... -insert panic here- Ahh, Terrance and Ashley, I love their relationship that's really not a relationship... As to your question, good question, while I've finally figured out how to end this, I'm still a little bit torn on if they change things, or if it's already happened. :) I love Draco Malfoy. And that's all I'm saying. Ahh, thank you for responding to my question about annon. Accounts. I never even bothered to ask my mum. I just did it and I don't regret it. Well, except for the fact that I'm not totally obsessed. Ohh! I like your drabble idea, let me see what I can do with that. Happy (early) Easter._

_1813 – I'm really glad that you enjoyed it. Here's more._

_Neveah Black – Ahh! I understand, yeah, lol, it was mostly you and ElizaHPFAN that had me wondering. :D I also wonder if annon reviews review with different names... that would get kind of confusing, don't you think? I'm glad you liked the chapter, after editing it for the fifty thousandth time I'm mostly happy with it now. :D If you want to broaden your vocabulary go right ahead, but I'm usually happy with the vocab you have now. -cheesey grin- I realllly like the green streaks, I think they might have to make a reappearance. Thanks for the review, darlin._

_Rambles – Alright, so I have a question for people, who wants to see Harry and Hermione change the future? Or what if this has already happened? While the final choice is mine, I'm curious as to what you as the readers of this epic adventure (and I mean an adventure in writing it) have to say..._

_Luv ya'll_

_Lady Starlight._


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